Iran is releasing all the remaining crewmembers of the Greek-owned tanker St Nikolas, which was seized by Iranian military forces in the Gulf of Oman in January under a deal whereby a replacement crew will come to look after the Empire Navigation-owned suezmax.
The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reached an agreement with Iran to have the crewmembers released, with the caveat that the Philippine government sends other crewmembers to take their place.
Eduardo Jose de Vega, undersecretary for the department of foreign affairs of the Philippines, said that non-Filipinos will replace the crew and that the ship will likely remain in Iranian custody until an Iranian court decides what to do with it.
In September last year, Empire Navigation admitted to violating US sanctions by shipping a cargo of Iranian crude oil aboard the same ship.
In April last year, Washington seized the tanker after it was caught transferring oil off Singapore. Following the arrest, Empire Navigation entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the US, pledging to transport some 800,000 barrels of illicit Iranian crude to the US for seizure and forfeiture. Iran responded to the arrest by seizing two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz within the space of a week.
