The US has made a late request to seize the vessel, which has been branded by Iran's foreign affairs minister as "piracy".
By Emily Mee, news reporter,
Image:The Grace 1 supertanker in the British territory of Gibraltar
Gibraltar has released the Iranian supertanker Grace 1, according to the territory's chief minister.
The
tanker was seized by Gibraltarian authorities and Royal Marines in the
Mediterranean last month on suspicion of attempting to smuggle oil to
Syria - violating EU sanctions.
Authorities in Gibraltar have since received assurances from Tehran that the ship will not unload its cargo in Syria.
Image:A British soldier during the capture of the Iranian tanker off the coast of Gibraltar
Gibraltar's chief minister Fabian Picardo said: "In light of the
assurances we have received, there are no longer any reasonable grounds
for the continued legal detention of the Grace 1 in order to ensure
compliance with the EU Sanctions Regulation.
"The Grace 1 is
therefore now released from detention under the Sanctions Act by
operation of law as confirmed this afternoon by the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court."
Advertisement
Iran's ambassador to London, Hamid Baeidinejad, says the Grace 1 tanker will leave Gibraltar soon.
Mr
Picardo said an investigation had confirmed the Grace 1 was in fact
intending to carry cargo to the Baniyas refinery in Syria.
The chief minister said he had provided evidence of this in a legal notice.
He
said he had held a "positive and constructive" meeting with Iranian
officials in London in an attempt to de-escalate tensions.
This comes after the US tried to stop the tanker's release, despite attempts by authorities in London and the British overseas territory to ease tensions with Iran.
Mr Baeidinejad said the US was "desperately" trying to block the release of the tanker, but they had faced a "miserable defeat".
Timeline of UK-Iran tanker tensions
In a tweet, Iran's foreign affairs minister Mohammad Javad Zarif accused the US of "piracy".
He
said: "Having failed to accomplish its objectives through its
#EconomicTerrorism-including depriving cancer patients of medicine- the
US attempted to abuse the legal system to steal our property on the high
seas.
"This piracy attempt is indicative of Trump admin's contempt for the law."
The
US made a late request to seize the vessel - and Mr Picardo said
Gibraltarian authorities "will make an objective, legal determination of
that request for separate proceedings".
The detention of the
Grace 1 tanker saw Iran retaliate by seizing the British-flagged oil
tanker Stena Impero, which remains held by Tehran.
Stena Impero told: 'If you obey, you will be safe'
A spokesperson for the Stena Impero said the situation for the
British-flagged tanker remains the same and they are awaiting further
developments.
Analysts hope the release of the Grace 1 will mean the Stena Impero is also freed from detention.
