The Iranian government has released a captured South Korean tanker, according to Seoul's foreign ministry
- 3 years ago
Iran released a South Korean-flagged tanker and its captain on Friday after a disagreement over billions of frozen oil funds, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.
The Hankuk Chemi and its international crew of 20 sailors were detained by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in January, but South Korea's foreign ministry said in a statement that their arrest had been lifted and that "the ship departed safely today."
The 147-meter-long (482-foot) vessel was seen speeding across the Strait of Hormuz at 9 knots, according to ship monitoring websites.
Tehran said the ship was carrying 7,200 tonnes of "oil chemical goods" at the time of the capture and accused it of "repeated violations of maritime environmental rules."
The decision came after Tehran pressed Seoul to release billions of dollars in Iranian funds frozen in the country as a result of US sanctions related to Iran's nuclear programme.
In February, Tehran announced that all crew members except the captain would be able to leave the country as a humanitarian measure, but the majority of them stayed on board to keep the ship running.
Iran was a major oil provider to resource-scarce South Korea before US sanctions prevented it from doing so, and Tehran claims it has $7 billion in funds frozen in Seoul.
- Tehran agreed to an international pact known as the JCPOA in 2015 to curb its nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief, but the agreement was plunged into disarray three years later after the US withdrew under then-President Donald Trump.
New US President Joe Biden has expressed his willingness to resurrect the agreement, and delegates are meeting in Vienna this week and try to get it back on track.
Last month, however, Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicated that the US would be opposed to releasing the funds kept in South Korea unless Iran returned to full conformity with the nuclear deal.
The money was not stated in a statement released by South Korea's foreign ministry on Friday.
However, according to numerous South Korean media outlets, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun will visit Tehran shortly, but no date has been set.
No one from the vessel's operator, DM Shipping, was available for comment right away.
Tehran has disputed that the capture of the ship was related to the money dispute.
The event involving the Hankuk Chemi was Iran's first large vessel seizure in over a year.
The British-flagged oil tanker Stena Impero was captured by the Guards in the Strait of Hormuz in July 2019 for allegedly ramming a fishing boat. Two months later, it was released.
It was widely seen at the time as retaliation for authorities in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar, detaining an Iranian tanker and then releasing it over US objections.
The two cases were not related, according to Tehran.
In 2019, the Coast Guard intercepted at least six more ships for suspected diesel smuggling.
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