South Korea is mounting a diplomatic effort to free an oil tanker seized by Iran amid a dispute over frozen bank funds, the latest outbreak of tensions between Tehran and a US ally.
A South Korean delegation arrived in Tehran on Thursday, three days after the 9,797-ton tanker Hankuk Chemi and his 20 crew members were detained. The delegation is expected to lay the groundwork for a visit to Iran on Sunday by the country’s deputy foreign minister, according to the Foreign Ministry.
The tanker’s apprehension coincides with increased international tensions between Iran and the US allies over the country’s potential links to disruptions in commercial transport, progress towards a possible nuclear weapon and alleged cyber attacks.
Tehran said the ship had breached environmental regulations, but Seoul disputes the claim. The most recent inspection of the tanker during a visit to a port in China in 2019 showed no environmental violations, only minor safety violations, according to the European Union shipping database, Equasis.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said that negotiations should not begin before the arrival of South Korea’s deputy foreign minister, and called the detention of a technical problem that is “being processed within. professional and judicial structure “.