Senior South Korean diplomat travels to Iran amid tensions above ship seizure
TEHRAN – South Korea’s Initially Vice Overseas Minister Choi Jong-kun left Seoul for Tehran early on Sunday to keep talks with Iranian officials more than a selection of problems together with Iran’s seizure of a South Korean ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
The South Korean diplomat is anticipated to meet his counterpart and other significant-level officers at the Iranian Foreign Ministry. He will be a part of a South Korean delegation currently viewing Tehran. The delegation, hosted by the country’s ambassador to Iran, is part of the entourage accompanying the East Asian country’s deputy overseas minister, according to Iran’s International Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh.
Tehran and Seoul are locked in a bitter dispute more than Iran’s blocked assets in South Korea, with the seizure of the South Korean staying the hottest in a collection of disagreements involving the two Asian countries. Some 7 billion dollars of Iranian oil revenues have been frozen in two South Korean financial institutions due to the fact September 2019, when Washington’s sanctions waiver for South Korea’s imports of Iranian oil expired.
On January 4, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) impounded the MT Hankuk Chemi carrying 20 crew users, which includes five South Koreans, for polluting the environment.
Khatibzadeh claimed the Korean vessel’s seizure was “a fully complex problem.”
“Based on original experiences coming from regional authorities, the concern is totally complex, and the vessel was led ashore on a judicial get for the reason that the vessel experienced been polluting the sea,” the spokesman said in a statement pursuing the seizure of the ship.
“Like other countries, the Islamic Republic of Iran is delicate about this sort of offenses, in particular polluting the marine atmosphere so, it discounts with this sort of offenses in accordance with the law,” he ongoing. “This was not an outstanding incident, and identical incidents experienced earlier transpired in Iran and in other countries’ waters, and it is something typical, and further details will be declared accordingly.”
The ship is at this time in dock at the southern Iranian port of Bandar Abbas. And the South Korean embassy in Tehran confirmed the safety and health of all 20 sailors Wednesday.
“I’m a little relieved to know that the crew is protected, but the scenario is serious,” Choi informed reporters at Incheon Worldwide Airport, west of Seoul, according to the South Korean Yonhap Information Company.
When Iran states that the ship was impounded for environmental problems, South Korea implied that the ship was seized in an effort and hard work to place pressure on Seoul to release Iran’s frozen revenue.
Citing a diplomatic resource in South Korea, Yonhap claimed that Iran manufactured a ask for to South Korea for the use of the frozen revenue to buy medicine, health care tools and COVID-19 vaccines from the COVAX Facility, a global vaccine procurement system.
“It will be a superior prospect to obviously hear after once more what the Iranian govt wishes and to distinguish what (we) can do and can’t do relating to the situation, as properly as what requirements to be consulted on with the U.S.,” Choi noted.
On the other hand, Iran has urged Seoul to behave logically in working with Tehran’s seizure of the vessel due to specialized problems somewhat than politicizing it.
“The South Korean government’s actions in this regard is not easy to understand and is rejected,” Khatibzadeh claimed. “We urge the Korean government to offer with this specialized concern logically and responsibly.”
Khatibzadeh when once more reiterated that the challenge with the South Korean ship is a totally technical one particular, incorporating that Iran is quite sensitive about defending its maritime setting and specials with any violations in accordance with the regulation.
“As the authority in charge of these difficulties, the [Iranian] Ports and Maritime Business is professionally seeking to offer the essential support to the ship and its crew, and will tell the public about it accordingly,” the spokesman pointed out.
According to Khatibzadeh, Iran and South Korea are in shut speak to to take care of excellent issues. He reported in the course of the go to of the South Korean delegation, the two sides will keep negotiations on how to give Iran obtain to its monetary methods in Korea. On the other aspect, South Korea mentioned that Choi will negotiate an early release of the South Korean oil tanker and its crew seized by Iranian authorities previous 7 days.
“We hope to maintain in-depth talks with important officials irrespective of whether it is a consular difficulty or other major challenges between South Korea and Iran,” the South Korean diplomat mentioned.
SM/PA