The Maltese-flagged CMA CGM Kribi, operated by French shipping company CMA CGM, may have been the first ship with links to France to transit the Strait of Hormuz since Iran effectively closed the vital shipping route, according to the MarineTraffic website.
The ship left waters off Dubai on Thursday and arrived off Muscat, Oman, on Friday, MarineTraffic data showed.
The ship’s path through the strait, according to MarineTraffic tracking data, suggests it took a northerly route and crossed a narrow gap between the Iranian islands of Qeshm and Larak – the latter being the island studied by analysts say Iran used it as a “toll gate.” To impose fees of up to $2 million to allow ships safe passage.
CMA CGM, the world’s third-largest container shipping company, declined to comment when contacted by the AP.
Traffic through the strait has fallen by about 90% since the start of the Iran war. Only about 150 ships, including tankers and container ships, have passed through the strait since March 1, according to data firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence. Most had a connection to Iran and countries such as China, India and Pakistan.
A Japanese ship also crossed the strait safely, the owner of the liquid gas tanker told the Reuters news agency on Friday. It would be the first crossing by a Japanese ship since the beginning of the war.
The Panama-flagged LNG tanker SOHAR LNG crossed the strait and was safe off the coast of Oman along with its crew on Friday, the ship’s co-owner, Mitsui OSK Lines of Japan, told Reuters. MarineTraffic also showed the ship just off the coast of Oman, east of the strait.
The Japanese logistics company declined to tell Reuters when the ship transited the strait or whether there were any negotiations with Iran to allow its safe passage.
Japanese newspaper Asahi said it was the first Japanese ship to pass through the strait since the United States and Israel began their war against Iran.
CBS/AP
