The Iranian oil tanker was allowed to go on Sunday. This Iranian oil tanker was the center of the diplomatic rift between the UK and Iran. Earlier USA requested the UK to prolong the seizure of Iranian oil tanker. But, British Overseas authorities rejected the American demand.
An ocean monitoring website Marine Trafic states that the Iranian tanker left the Gibraltar coast on Sunday evening before 23:00 GMT. British authorities have also confirmed that the Iranian oil tanker has left and is moving towards the east and will soon join the lane of international shipping in the strait if Gibraltar.
The ship is now renamed as Adrian Darya 1 while its previous name was Grace 1. It has a cargo worth 130 Million dollars. Crude oil is the main component of Cargo. The new name of the oil tanker is printed on all parts of the vessel under the international maritime laws. This oil tanker remained in British custody for more than 40 days.
Iran assured the Gibraltar government that the Tanker will not go the countries placed under sanctions by the European Union. British marine authorities seized this tanker in July. Authorities doubted that the tanker was carrying oil to Syria. It must be remembered that Syria is a close ally of Iran but it is facing international sanctions.
The detention of the Iranian oil tanker ended in last week. But the US court issued an order to seize the tanker because it may have links with Iranian revolutionary Guards (IRGC). US authorities have declared IRGC as a terrorist organization. But Gibraltar’s authorities say that US request does not comply with the European law.
Iran clarified that the tanker is not headed to Syria. The seizure of the Iranian oil tanker caused a deterioration in UK-Iran relations. In a tit for tat move, Iran also seized a British ship in July. The tanker named “Stena Impero” is still under Iranian custody. UK government is trying to resolve the issue diplomatically.
Iranian officials say that the ties with the UK will not be normalized until Iranian oil tanker reaches its destination. Iranian authorities further argue that British authorities bear more responsibility to normalize the tensions. Experts believe that the release of Iranian oil tanker will help in neutralizing the UK-Iran tensions. They further claim that now Iran will also allow UK’s oil tanker to go.
On the other hand, British authorities say that they will utilize all the possible means to get British oil tanker free. Foreign policy experts opine that British authorities are trying to engage Iran on the diplomatic front. After having tensed relations with the USA, Iran cannot afford soared relations with the UK. There are possibilities that the UK will manage to have its tanker back by using backdoor diplomacy. Iran can no longer sustain the Western pressure. Sooner or later it will have to release the British oil tanker.
Many experts believe that the tanker tussle is a diplomatic victory for Iran. Iran gave a tit for tat response to the UK. Iran’s response forced Gibraltar to release the Iranian oil tanker while British oil tanker is still under Iranian custody. Iran has warned the world that it can go to any extent to save its trade.
While some experts believe that the UK has conveyed its message to Iran that any trade with Syria via British waters is not acceptable for European and British water. Now Iran will avoid using international routes to trade with the Syrian regime. Summarizing this all, If Iran releases British oil tanker, it cannot be regarded as a zero-sum game.
Related: US-IRAN TENSIONS: WHY THE US WILL NOT WAGE WAR ON IRAN!
