Iran calls on Britain to release oil tanker

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - Iran on Friday called on Britain to release an Iranian supertanker seized off the coast of Gibraltar last week, warning British authorities against playing a “dangerous and unclear” game and urging Western powers to leave the region.

"We call on [Britain] to release the oil tanker as soon as possible, because it would be in the interests of everyone," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said in an interview with the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

He questioned the legal basis for the ship's detention, which authorities in Gibraltar said was a lawful seizure. Gibraltar is a British territory, and Britain's Royal Marines assisted in the operation to apprehend the vessel in the Mediterranean last week.

Authorities said that it was carrying 2.1 million barrels of light crude oil and to a refinery in the Syrian port, Banias, in violation of European Union sanctions.

“We acted because we had reasonable grounds to believe that this vessel was taking actions in breach of established EU sanctions against Syria,” Gibraltar’s chief minister, Fabian Picardo, told the territory’s Parliament on Friday.

He said police arrested the ship's captain and first officer and seized documents and electronic devices after "a protracted search of the vessel."

Mousavi said Tehran believes that the supertanker, Grace 1, was seized at the request of the United States. Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borell also said last week that Gibraltar detained the ship following a U.S. appeal.

“Our question to British authorities is: Has the EU imposed oil sanctions on Iran?” Mousavi said.

“The claims are without legal basis and we advise [Britain] not to start a dangerous and unclear game under the influence of the Americans,” Mousavi said.

The confrontation over the Iranian tanker comes amid broader tensions between Iran and Western powers in the Persian Gulf, including a recent spate of attacks on commercial vessels in the region.

Britain said Thursday that Iranian vessels attempted to block the oil tanker British Heritage near the Strait of Hormuz but were repelled by a British naval escort.

Iran has threatened to retaliate against British shipping assets in the gulf.

Britain's Sky News channel reported Friday that a second naval warship, the HMS Duncan, was being deployed to assist in maritime security efforts in the region.

Mousavi said the growing foreign military presence in the gulf was contributing to instability and “should be considered a danger to everyone.”