Tehran frees the crew of the seized South Korean freighter

A decision taken for "humanitarian reasons". The captain remains in custody. The Pasdaran had blocked the ship on charges of pollution; billions of Iranian dollars frozen by Seoul over US sanctions at stake. The Pentagon recalls the Nimitz aircraft carrier from the Gulf waters.

Tehran (AsiaNews / Agencies) - With a decision dictated by "humanitarian reasons", Iran has decided to free the crew members, with the exception of the captain, of the South Korean freighter MT Hankuk Chemi, stopped last month in the Persian Gulf for " environmental pollution".

On January 4, a patrol from Pasdaran (the Revolutionary Guards) stopped the ship near the Strait of Hormuz and placed the 20 sailors of different nationalities under arrest for alleged environmental damage to the waters.

The sailors originate from South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar. The ongoing clash between Tehran and Seoul over billions of dollars in assets of the Islamic Republic and frozen by South Korea following US sanctions on Iran are among the reasons that led to the docking of the merchant ship.

The punitive measures were imposed by the previous US administration led by Donald Trump, which had a policy of "maximum pressure" on Tehran and withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal.

Now the first steps of the new Democrat administration of Joe Biden are awaited. Thus far it has seemed willing to reconnect the channels of dialogue signalled by the decision taken by the Pentagon in these hours to recall the aircraft carrier Nimitz after nine months of patrolling the waters of the Gulf, to "observe" Tehran's moves closely.

In a note, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry Saeed Khatibzadeh confirmed the release of the sailors "at the request of the South Korean government and with the collaboration of the judiciary" of the Islamic Republic. At the moment there is no further news on the fate of the crew or whether they have already left the country, while the captain will remain in Iran to guard the boat still blocked in port.

Tehran is one of the main suppliers of oil to South Korea. However, the imposition of US sanctions wanted by Trump effectively blocked sales. According to Khatibzadeh, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was informed in recent days by his South Korean counterpart that Seoul would be making "maximum efforts" to release the funds as soon as possible.