A Greek court has overturned a court decision that allowed the United States to seize part of a shipment of Iranian oil from an Iranian-flagged tanker off the coast of Greece.

The incident drew angry reactions from Tehran as its forces seized two Greek tankers in the Persian Gulf last month after Iran warned it would take “punitive measures” against Athens.

Iran also appealed the court’s original decision, and the court accepted an appeal to set aside the decision.

It was not immediately clear whether the US or Greek governments would appeal the decision handed down by the Chalkis District Court of Appeals.

Greece has called Iran’s seizure of two of its tankers in the Persian Gulf “piracy”.

The affair began when Greek authorities seized the Iranian-flagged ship Lana, formerly known as the Pegasus, with a Russian crew of 19 off the coast of the southern island of Evia in April due to European Union sanctions.

The ship was soon released due to the complications of owning it. In May, the United States confiscated part of a shipment of Iranian oil seized on board and transferred it to another ship in accordance with the original decision of the Greek judiciary.

In another case, Lana was subsequently re-arrested by the Greek authorities on the basis of an interim court order in respect of debts owed to another shipping company, represented by lawyer George Kozanidis.