Tensions are only rising around the Middle East Gulf, despite the release of the former Grace 1 last week.
On Monday, the British Royal Navy announced a third ship, the HMS Defender, would be dispatched to the region to help ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media reports the Islamic republic has dispatched its "most advanced destroyer," the Sahand, to the Gulf of Aden to accompany Iranian ships around the Arabian Peninsula.
The Sahand is equipped with both surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missile systems and can sail for five months without resupply, according to the report from PressTV.
State media did not say what ship they would be escorting. It is widely assumed the ex-Grace 1, the 300,600-dwt Adrian Darya 1 (built 1997), will be transiting the Suez Canal.
After its release 19 August, the Adrian Darya sailed for Greece amid US warnings port states should not aid the ship. The US has argued the ship is being used by Iran's military, the Revolutionary Guard, to ship oil to Syria.
Greece declined to supply the ship, so it briefly changed course to Turkey, according to automatic identification system data. Its destination is currently "FOR ORDER".
The Adrian Darya 1 is currently south of Crete, sailing east at 8.3 knots.
The ship was arrested 4 July by UK authorities in Gibraltar. It was speculated the UK-flagged, 50,000-dwt Stena Impero (built 2018) was seized by Iran in retaliation and that the Stena Impero would be allowed to sail once the Adrian Darya 1 was released.
That has not happened yet, though Stena Bulk chief executive Erik Hannell met with Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif to discuss its release.
Alongside the HMS Destroyer, the Royal Navy has the HMS Montrose and HMS Duncan in the region. The UK has signed on to a US-led coalition to ensure freedom of navigation in the area around the Strait of Hormuz, where millions of barrels of oil pass daily.
Bahrain and Australia have both agreed to join the coalition, known as the International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC), as well.
"Wherever the red ensign flies around the world, the UK stands by to protect freedom of navigation whenever is it tested," UK defence secretary Ben Wallace said in a statement announcing the HMS Defender's move.
"The men and women of HMS Defender will contribute to the IMSC alongside international partners."
