A French-owned container ship has crossed the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping route that has been largely restricted since the start of the Middle East conflict.
The Maltese-flagged Kribi, owned by French shipping group CMA CGM, passed through the strait on Thursday, according to MarineTraffic data analysed by the news agencies AFP and Reuters.
It appears to be the first known transit by a major European shipping group since early March.
Iran sharply limited access to the Strait of Hormuz after US-Israeli strikes on 28 February, triggering retaliation and disrupting maritime traffic across the region.
Before the conflict, around 20 percent of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas passed through the narrow waterway between Iran and the Musandam Governorate, an exclave of Oman.
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French signal displayed
Data showed the Kribi exited the Gulf and was sailing off Muscat, Oman, on Friday. During its journey, the vessel displayed “Owner France” on its tracking system, a field normally used to indicate destination.
Shipping data showed the ship changed its listed destination to “Owner France” before entering Iranian territorial waters, signalling its nationality to authorities. It had originally been bound for Pointe-Noire in the Republic of the Congo.
It was not immediately clear how the vessel secured safe passage. CMA CGM did not respond to requests for comment, and France’s foreign ministry declined to comment.
The strait has remained largely closed to international shipping, with crossings reduced to a trickle since the conflict began.
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New route through Iran
Navigation data showed the vessel used a newly approved route through Iranian waters near Larak Island, off Iran’s coast. The shipping journal Lloyd’s List has dubbed the corridor the “Tehran Toll Booth”.
A Lloyd’s List Intelligence analyst said in a briefing on Thursday that “at least two vessels have paid to use the corridor around Larak Island”. Maritime data analysed by AFP showed ships still transiting the strait have been passing close to the island.
Since early March, most vessels crossing the strait have been linked to Iran or countries such as the United Arab Emirates, India, China or Saudi Arabia.
Analysts said some ships began displaying links to China to signal political neutrality and reduce the risk of being targeted.
Beijing this week expressed “gratitude” after three of its ships passed through the strait, including two container ships belonging to state-owned giant Cosco.
(with newswires)
