South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted a foreign ministry statement as saying that Iran had released a seized South Korean oil tanker and its captain.
South Korean official media minutes ago, citing a statement from the country’s Foreign Ministry, claimed that Iran had released the seized South Korean ship and its captain.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the tanker “Hankok Chiami” (Hankook Chimi) left the Iranian port with the captain and his 12 crew at 6 am today. The ship’s crew had previously been released but had not left the tanker to provide maintenance.
South Korea’s foreign ministry says the captain and crew of the ship are safe.
Last week, Yonhap News Agency quoted a diplomatic source as saying that the embargo on the tanker and its captain could be lifted in the coming days, citing the progress made in negotiations with the Iranian side.
The South Korean oil tanker “Hankok Chiami” was seized by the navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the morning of January 6, 2016 for violating environmental protocols.
Explaining the incident, the Revolutionary Guards said Hankook Chiami was originally from Mumbai, India, at the port of Al-Jubail in Saudi Arabia, but was detained for violating environmental laws.
It was reported at the time that the vessel was carrying 7,200 tonnes of ethanol. The crew consists of citizens of South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar.
Saeed Khatibzadeh, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, also spoke about the incident on January 6: “Iran, like other countries, is sensitive to similar violations, especially pollution of the marine environment, so it deals with it within the framework of the law.”
He clarified that this event is not exceptional and has occurred in similar cases in Iran and other countries.
South Korean media have reported in recent days, citing diplomatic sources, that the prime minister will probably travel to Tehran on April 12 to meet with officials of the Islamic Republic and discuss the situation of the South Korean tanker.