UK to facilitate release of Iranian tanker if it gets Syria guarantees: Hunt

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

WORLD NEWS JULY 13, 2019 / 11:55 AM / UPDATED 4 HOURS AGO

UK to facilitate release of Iranian tanker if it gets Syria guarantees: Hunt

LONDON (Reuters) - British foreign minister Jeremy Hunt told his Iranian counterpart on Saturday that Britain would facilitate the release of the detained Grace 1 oil tanker if Tehran gave guarantees it would not go to Syria.

The tanker was seized last week by British Royal Marines off the coast of the British Mediterranean territory of Gibraltar on suspicion of violating sanctions against Syria.

Iran on Saturday reiterated its call for the ship’s release. It denies the tanker was taking oil to Syria in violation of European Union sanctions.

The affair has stoked tension in the Gulf, with Britain saying on Thursday that it had fended off Iranian ships that tried to block a British tanker in the area.

Hunt said the call with Iran’s foreign minister had been constructive and Mohammad Javad Zarif had told him that Iran wanted to resolve the issue and was not seeking to escalate tensions.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-iran-tanker-britain/uk-to-facilitate-release-of-iranian-tanker-if-it-gets-syria-guarantees-hunt-idUSKCN1U80II

[soryang]

1. The UK action was illegal

This line in the Reuters article is misleading: "European countries do not have sanctions against Iran, but have had them in place against Iran’s ally Syria since 2011."

European Union sanctions only apply to EU members. There is no provision authorizing EU members to seize third party nation shipping in international transit.