Iran Releases South Korean Oil Tanker Seized Over Frozen Funds

Iran introduced a South Korean oil tanker that had been at the middle of a dispute above punishing U.S. sanctions on Tehran, the very same day Western and Iranian officials agreed to keep on talks aimed at reviving the embattled 2015 nuclear accord.

The Hankuk Chemi, a South Korean-flagged ship that Iran impounded in January, remaining an Iranian port at five:fifty a.m. local time on Friday, South Korea’s International Ministry claimed. Tehran in the beginning seized the ship, alongside with its captain and 19 crew customers, for what it claimed have been violations of environmental regulations.

South Korea compensated $a hundred,000 for the release of the ship—lower than Iran’s asking value of $fourteen million, in accordance to a Western formal briefed on the talks. The South Korean International Ministry didn’t reply to requests for comment.

Iran detained the Hankuk Chemi’s captain until Friday. Some of the crew customers had been introduced previously and went back to South Korea, while other people stayed on the ship for maintenance purposes.

“The health of the crew and captain are seem. The ship’s cargo is also in superior condition,” the South Korean International Ministry claimed. A spokesman for Tehran’s International Ministry claimed the ship was introduced “following the completion of investigations” of its alleged misconduct.