TEHRAN, July 5 (NNN-IRNA) – An official with Iran’s Foreign Ministry described UK move to seize Iranian oil tanker as sea piracy, saying that Iran will use its political and legal capacities to release the tanker and regain its rights.
Iranian Foreign Ministry late on Thursday summoned UK Ambassador to Iran Robert Macaire over the illegal seizure of an Iranian oil tanker.
In the course of summon, head of Foreign Ministry Third Bureau of Western Europe deplored the UK move as an illegal, and called for immediate release of the tanker, which according to the information available was seized at the order of the US.
Noting that the tanker was moving in the international waterways, he said that the UK has no right to exert its or EU’s unilateral sanctions against other countries extraterritorially.
“This is the same US bullying policy that European states have always protested to it,” he said.
During the meeting, all the documents indicating that the oil tanker was moving on the legal path were made available to the UK envoy, who said that he will submit Iran’s protest to his country’s officials.
He also stressed that the UK does not comply with US unilateral sanctions.
According to Spanish officials, the Grace 1, Panamanian-flagged tanker carrying Iranian oil, was seized by British patrol ships off Gibraltar and was detained on the US orders.
NNN-IRNA
