Naval escorts could make tankers a target for Iran, warns UN maritime chief

Naval escorts will not guarantee safe passage for oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and could even present a target for Iran as it attempts to leverage control of the vital shipping lane, the head of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has warned.

Speaking at the start of a two-day emergency meeting of the UN maritime agency’s governing council in London, secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez told Sky News “de-escalation” was the only sustainable way to restore the flow of shipping.

The Strait of Hormuz - in normal circumstances the conduit for a fifth of global oil demand - has effectively been closed for more than two weeks since the US-Israeli offensive against Iran.

Tehran responded to the assault by attacking tankers and other energy infrastructure, paralysing traffic and triggering a price shock on global energy markets.

‘Not a long-term solution’

US President Donald Trump has called on allies including the UK to provide naval support for tankers to reopen the shipping lane, but Mr Dominguez warned that would not be enough to restore the flow of oil, cargo, fertilisers and food to and from the Gulf.

“The reality is that a ship can still be targeted even with an escort vessel next to it, and it doesn’t really provide the guarantees, not even on insurance or to the seafarers, that trade can continue to come back. It’s not a long-term sustainable solution,” he said.

Asked if he was concerned that a naval convoy could present a target, he replied “absolutely” and said it was unlikely that traffic would resume without a formal ceasefire.

“I can’t see that because it’s too risky, and I will not be calling on anyone to take the risk to send innocent ships and innocent seafarers in particular through the Strait of Hormuz when there are no guarantees from all the parties involved that it is safe to do so.

“We need to de-escalate the situation. It’s the only solution. And this is why we meet here at IMO. We actually believe and trust multilateralism and dialogues. And that’s how we find solutions.”

‘Cowardly’ attacks threaten industry

The emergency meeting was called by members of the IMO’s 40-strong council, which includes the UK and the US, as well as Gulf states that have faced retaliation from Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.

Representatives of Iran and Israel will be present as observers at the meeting in London, which takes place at the IMO’s headquarters on the south bank of the Thames opposite the Palace of Westminster.

Describing the Iranian attacks on shipping as “cowardly”, Mr Dominguez said that commercial vessels and their crews had been put at unacceptable risk.

“Shipping should have never been put in this situation. Those are very cowardly attacks on a sector that doesn’t take part in these geopolitical conflicts,” Mr Dominguez said.

“The reality is that everybody’s affected, not just the countries in the region.”

-Agencies