This archive report was first published on 7 July 2019.
Published on July 7, 2019, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addressed the detention of the Grace 1 tanker in a press conference in Tehran.
"The tanker was carrying Iran's oil, and contrary to what the British government claims, its destination was not Syria," Araghchi stated.
He further emphasized that the port in Syria mentioned by the British government does not have the capacity to accommodate a supertanker of the Grace 1's size.
The 330-metre Grace 1, capable of carrying 2 million oil barrels, was halted by police and customs agencies in Gibraltar, a British overseas territory, on Thursday.
The ship was detained 2.5 miles south of Gibraltar in what it considers British waters, although Spain claims the area as Spanish territory.
Araghchi alleged that the tanker was intercepted in international waters and accused Britain's Royal Navy of committing "maritime piracy".
The detention of the tanker occurred at a sensitive time in Iran-EU ties, as the bloc considers how to respond to Iran's breach of the uranium enrichment limit in the 2015 nuclear deal.
Iran is currently following the legal path through court but hopes the issue can be resolved through ongoing diplomatic consultations, Araghchi added.
