This archive report was first published on 19 August 2019.
On August 19, 2019, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, issued a warning to the US against seizing an Iranian oil tanker that had departed Gibraltar despite a US bid to have it detained.
"Iran has given necessary warnings to American officials through its official channels... not to make such a mistake because it would have grave consequences," Mousavi told a news conference.
The tanker had been seized by Royal Marines off the coast of UK territory Gibraltar on July 4 on suspicion it was shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions.
Iran had responded by impounding a British-flagged tanker in strategic Gulf waters two weeks later, in what Britain called a tit-for-tat move.
Mousavi dismissed the notion that there was a link between the two seizures, stating, "There is no connection whatsoever between these two vessels."
He also referred to the British-flagged Stena Impero held off the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas, saying, "There have been two or three maritime violations made by that ship."
The Iranian spokesman criticized the US "unilateralism," stating, "The Americans have not been very successful with their unilateral sanctions that have no legal basis."
He urged other countries not to accept sanctions the United States has imposed on Iran "because they're not legitimate and have no legal basis".
Tensions between Iran and the US have been rising since President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the US from a landmark nuclear deal in May 2018 and began imposing sanctions against the Islamic republic as part of a "maximum pressure" campaign.
