A Russian tanker impounded by Greece this week and reportedly carrying Iranian oil will be released amid confusion about sanctions on its owners.
"The coast guard has been ordered by the anti-money laundering authority to release the vessel," a Greek government official said, without providing further details.
On Tuesday, Greek authorities impounded the 115,500-deadweight tonnage Russian-flagged Pegas, with 19 Russian crew members on board, on the southern coast of the island of Evia.
They said the ship was impounded as part of EU sanctions on Russia for the invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier this month, the EU banned Russian-flagged vessels from its ports, with some exemptions, as it adopted new sanctions against Russia for what the Kremlin describes as a "special military operation".
The Pegas tanker was also among five vessels sanctioned by the United States on Feb. 22, 2022 - two days before Russia's invasion of Ukraine - as part of broader sanctions against Promsvyazbank, a bank Washington described as critical to Russia's defence sector.
Promsvyazbank said it and its unit PSB Lizing were not the owners of the tanker as it was bought back by its owner in April 2021.
Promsvyazbank did not name the new owner. PSB Lizing said the owner was TransMorFlot. TransMorFlot was not available for comment.
A Greek sources close to the matter said that following checks there were no legal grounds to continue impounding the Pegas as the ship had recently changed ownership and its new owner was not on an EU sanctions list.
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