Iranian officials say the country is offering to cease attacks on commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Over the weekend, Iran offered the U.S. a deal in which Washington would lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran would allow ships to move through the strategic waterway freely. That deal would also include the postponement of discussions regarding nuclear talks, which are a key sticking point for the U.S.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed to reporters Monday that President Donald Trump discussed Iran’s new proposal to reopen the strait with his national security team.
Safety remains a primary concern among the maritime community amid the tenuous talks between the U.S. and Iean, with International Maritime Organization (IMO) secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez telling the U.N. Security Council on Monday that “the principle of freedom of navigation is not negotiable.”
Dominguez said there was “no legal basis” for any country to impose payments or tolls through an international strait, and explicitly called for states, when conditions allow, to assist in clearing hazards to navigation such as mines.
According to MarineTraffic, 29 incidents have been recorded where a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz has been attacked since March 1, with one recorded incident being the U.S. seizure of the Iranian cargo ship Touska.
Daily movement increased from nine crossings on Friday to 10 on Saturday, before easing to four on Sunday. East-to-west traffic in the conduit was limited to just two vessels.
Whether the strait is “open” for commercial passage even if a deal gets made will continue to be a debate throughout shipping.
“If what they mean by opening the straits is, ‘Yes, the straits are opened, as long as you coordinate with Iran, get our permission, or we will blow you up and you pay us,’—that’s not opening the straits,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Fox News in a Monday interview. “They cannot normalize—nor can we tolerate them trying to normalize—a system in which the Iranians decide who gets to use an international waterway and how much you have to pay them to use it.”
Shipping companies aren’t always willing to swiftly return to conflict-ridden areas even months after hostilities cool down. Although the Houthis suspended their attacks on Red Sea shipping in the wake of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire to end their two-year war last fall, most ocean carriers have largely avoided the waterway due to safety risks.
CMA CGM is the only major container line that has since brought multiple service lines back to the Red Sea. Starting April 2, the carrier began using the Suez Canal in both directions on the newly launched Japan-China-North Europe Ocean Rise Express (OCR) service, which deploys 12 ships between 8,400 and 10,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs).
And starting this week, CMA CGM is restoring westbound Suez transits on the Europe Pakistan India Consortium (EPIC) service. The 11,388-TEU CMA CGM Gemini is expected to arrive at the canal on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, CMA CGM reinstated the Mediterranean Club Express (MEX) service to the Red Sea route.
Trump administration to extend Jones Act waiver
The updates out of the Middle East follow a decision made Friday by the Trump administration to extend the waiver of the Jones Act 90 days in a bid to lower oil prices, which had escalated throughout the Iran conflict.
The Jones Act, a 1920 statute enacted by Congress to stimulate the shipping industry during World War I, specifies that cargo shipped between U.S. ports must be carried on ships that are U.S.-built and -flagged, and have American crew members.
In March, the Trump administration waived the trade law for 60 days to better facilitate the transportation of energy products and commodities throughout the U.S.
With the waiver, foreign ships can make the stops at ports that otherwise would only be reserved for American vessels. According to the White House, more than 40 tankers have used the Jones Act waiver, increasing the availability of transported goods between U.S. ports by more than 70 percent.
The initial two-month waiver was set to expire May 17. The exemption temporarily removes Jones Act restrictions for coal, crude oil, refined petroleum products, natural gas, natural gas liquids, fertilizer and other energy derivatives.
Advocates for the waiver, such as oil industry representatives, had called for an extension, telling the administration the relief has made it easier to access fuel and oil supplies.
U.S. maritime associations are not as fond of the waiver, with Shipbuilders Council of America president Matt Paxton saying the waivers undercut the industry, and have done nothing to reduce gas prices for Americans.
“What waivers actually do is have a chilling effect on investments in commercial shipbuilding markets and create wide open ports and coastlines for any foreign ship or crew to call and gauge hardworking Americans while foreign energy companies and shippers get rich,” Paxton said. “These actions clearly demonstrate that this policy is ‘America last’.”
A coalition of labor unions including the American Maritime Officers; International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots; Marine Firemen’s Union; Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association; Maritime Trades Department, AFL-CIO, also have come out against the waiver for “handing critical maritime work to foreign vessel operators.”
