Gibraltar (AFP)
Gibraltar on Sunday rejected an American request to seize an Iranian oil tanker at the center of a diplomatic crisis as it prepares to leave the waters of the British territory where it has been held for weeks.
In a statement, the authorities of the "Rock" refused this seizure requested in application of sanctions provided for by an American law: "under European law, Gibraltar is unable to provide the assistance requested by the United States" .
This is the second time British territory has rejected a request for US assistance in this crisis between Washington, Tehran and London.
Gibraltar had boarded the tanker Grace 1 on 4 July on suspicion of transporting oil to Syria under European sanctions against Syria. The tanker was cleared Thursday to leave when Tehran assured that the cargo of 2.1 million barrels would not be delivered to Syria.
Meanwhile, the statement said, the US has made several demands for the oil tanker to be locked up, and the US Department of Justice issued a seizure warrant on Friday based on US sanctions against Iran.
But "the sanctions regime of the European Union is fundamentally different from that of the United States," the statement said. In addition, European regulations "specifically prohibit the application of certain US laws", including those on sanctions against Iran.
The boarding of the Grace 1 had caused a serious crisis between London and Tehran, which denied that the ship was heading for Syria, and seized two weeks later a British tanker, Stena Impero, in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran seized two other oil tankers, exacerbating the tension in an area where several ships were attacked or damaged by mines and where an American drone was shot down by Iran, while the United States tightened the grip. sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
US President Donald Trump withdrew in 2018 from an international agreement to frame the Iranian nuclear industry, negotiated by his predecessor Barack Obama with Iran, France, Russia, Britain, China and Germany, and reinstated draconian sanctions against Tehran.
The Europeans tried to persuade Iran to continue to respect the agreement, striving to limit the impact of US sanctions that Washington wants to apply to all companies trading with Iran regardless of their nationality.
- New name, new pavilion -
The tanker remains free to leave.
Richard de la Rosa, general manager of the tanker's maritime agent, Astralship, announced Saturday that it should weigh anchor "in the two days to come".
The tanker, sailing under the Panamanian flag, was renamed Adrian Darya for the remainder of his trip and went under the flag of Iran, which floated on Sunday at its stern.
"They are making changes in the crew," Riard de la Rosa told AFP, adding that Indian and Ukrainian sailors were due to arrive on Sunday.
Part of the crew, including the captain, must be replaced because the United States has threatened to deny or withdraw entry visas "to the crew members of ships helping the Revolutionary Guards by carrying oil from Iran. "
- Second refusal -
The United States tried for the first time on August 15 to persuade Gibraltar to detain the tanker by sending a request for legal aid, while the justice of the British territory was preparing to release him.
Gibraltar explains in its statement that it replied the same day that it "was unable to comply with this request", on the basis of information provided by Washington, the offenses invoked by the United States not being in the United States. the European Union.
On August 16, the United States sent additional information, including to prove that the Iranian Revolutionary Guards were controlling the tanker and its cargo. But unlike the United States, the European Union does not consider the Guardians of the Revolution as a terrorist organization and does not apply the same sanctions as the United States, the statement said.
© 2019 AFP