AS THE US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was explaining to the world on Tuesday that “hundreds of ships” were lining up to transit the Strait of Hormuz under the red, white and blue dome of security branded Project Freedom, the shipping industry was confused.

No ships were moving and the shipowners, insurers and industry officials listening to him talk remained unconvinced that anything had changed.

If anything, the threat to shipping in the region had increased since Project Freedom was announced.

But before such nuances could be explored, Donald Trump had executed another abrupt U-turn and hit pause on his plan to guide commercial ships through the strait.

Shipping has learned to ignore the statements and focus on the reality of what is happening on the water, but even so, the growing gap between rhetoric and reality is worrying the industry.

Fielding questions in the Oval Office after the Hegseth press conference, Donald Trump said the US is making “tremendous deals” on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

The unconfirmed reports suggest the ‘deal’ would declare an end to the war and the start of a 30-day period of negotiations on a detailed agreement to open the strait, limit Iran’s nuclear programme and lift US sanctions.

The conditions of that deal, should it emerge, matter.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has already said this week that there will be no return to the old status quo, confirming that Iran remains unprepared to give up what is now its singular most powerful weapon, revenue raiser and insurance policy.

The increasingly loose references being made to canal tolls and the 1936 Montreux Convention that limits the passage of warships through the Dardanelles and Bosporus straits, has left many worried that the US is not sufficiently considering the long-term freedom of navigation that was available to shipping prior to February 28 in its planning.

It is worth reminding everyone at this pivotal point, that any disruption to shipping represents a global interference to energy and food security.

The principle of freedom of navigation is not negotiable or open to deals. Ships must be allowed to trade worldwide unhindered and in accordance with international law. 

On that point there can be no gaps between the rhetoric and the reality on the water.

Richard Meade,
Editor-in-chief, Lloyd’s List

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