Iranian-flagged tanker Lana is ready to leave Greece after fully recovering its oil cargo that had been illegally confiscated by the United States, a report shows.
The Monday report by the Reuters news agency said that the process of reloading oil from the US-chartered Ice Energy tanker to Lana had been completed and the Iranian ship was ready to set off from the Greek port of Piraeus, where it has been anchored off since late July.
The report quoted a source familiar with the case as saying that reloading process had been competed on Sunday.
Lana, a ship that formerly sailed under the name of Pegas, was arrested in April off the Greek island of Evia, near the town of Karystos, where it had sought technical assistance over an engine problem.
The seizure came after the US Department of Justice requested the confiscation of the ship’s cargo over baseless accusations that it had violated US sanctions on Iran.
Greek authorities had initially complied with the request but courts in the country issued rulings in June and July stating that the cargo should be returned to Lana.
The rulings came after Iran arrested two Greek tankers in the Persian Gulf. Iranian authorities had condemned Lana's arrest while warning Greek authorities that the move would not go unpunished.
Analysts have described the failed US attempt to seize Iranian oil cargo as a major blow to Washington’s campaign of maximum pressure on Iran.
The campaign began in 2018 when a former American administration pulled out on an international deal on Iran’s nuclear program and imposed sanctions on the country.