Efforts Underway for Safe Evacuation of Strait of Hormuz

Summary

IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez discusses the ongoing efforts to evacuate around 550-600 merchant vessels from the Strait of Hormuz safely, the limited daily transits, the legal stance against tolls, and plans to clear mines from the shipping lane.

• Only about 30 merchant vessels per day are transiting the Strait of Hormuz, well below the normal 130.
• An estimated 550-600 IMO-registered merchant vessels are still waiting to evacuate.
• The IMO is coordinating with Oman, Iran, and the US to establish safe routes and avoid collisions.
• Iran has temporarily established a traffic separation scheme; another route via Omani waters is being developed.
• The IMO reiterates that there is no legal basis under international law for imposing tolls or fees on international straits.
• Mines are reported in the long-standing IMO traffic separation scheme; Iran is expected to demine the area with assistance from other countries.
• Navigation is expected to resume via the established traffic separation scheme once mines are cleared.