US "Iran Must Immediately Release Detained Korean Ship"‥Iran Calls It a "Technical Issue"

Dispute Between Both Sides Over Detention of Our Ship by Iran

Korea Chemica arriving at the Iranian port after being seized on the high seas. The circle on the right shows the Revolutionary Guard fast boat approaching and boarding the tanker, as captured on CCTV.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] On the 4th (local time), the U.S. Department of State demanded the immediate release of the Korean-flagged oil tanker detained by Iran.

The U.S. Department of State expressed this position in a statement issued by its spokesperson on the same day. The spokesperson pointed out that Iran is threatening freedom of navigation in the Gulf and attempting to force the easing of sanctions against Iran.

Iran claimed that this incident was a technical measure. Said Hatibzadeh, spokesperson for the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, "According to initial reports from local authorities, this matter is entirely technical, and the vessel was acted upon in accordance with a court order to investigate marine pollution."

Spokesperson Hatibzadeh added, "This issue will be handled within the framework of the law."

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran seized the Korean-flagged tanker Korea Chemihos at around 10 a.m. that day, citing "repeated violations of marine environmental regulations." The vessel had 20 crew members on board, including 5 Koreans and crew members of Indonesian, Vietnamese, and Myanmar nationalities.

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