TEHRAN, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry on Monday warned against any attempt by the United States to seize the Iranian oil tanker released on Aug. 15 by the order of Gibraltar Supreme Court after 42 days in detention.
Iranian oil tanker Grace 1, which was renamed by the Iranian authorities as Adrian Darya 1, was captured by British Royal Marines in Gibraltar on July 4 for allegedly violating EU sanctions against Syria.
Following the Gibraltar court ruling, the United States issued a warrant for the re-seizure of the tanker. However, the Gibraltar authorities set the oil tanker free despite U.S. demand.
"Any attempt to do this (seize the Iranian vessel) ... would be a threat to the free maritime shipping," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Monday.
Iran has notified Washington, through the official means, that "if they make such a mistake (by seizing Iranian oil tanker), they will face consequences," Mousavi said in his weekly press briefing.
