The UN said it has begun coordinating the evacuation of the ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz after the war between the United States and Iran. The International Maritime Organization said the operation will cover about 600 vessels stuck in the area, along with roughly 11,000 seafarers who were trapped in the Persian Gulf for three and a half months. Nearly 200 ships have already left the strait.
IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez said the large-scale operation will be carried out with Iran, Oman, the United States and the shipping industry. He said, "We obtained the necessary safety guarantees and carried out a comprehensive review of the conditions for safe navigation to support these operations." The announcement followed the U.S.-Iran deal that reopened the Strait of Hormuz after Iran had closed it to traffic.
The UN said the move should increase traffic through the strait, which remained limited in the first days after the memorandum was signed. According to UN estimates, around 600 ships are still stranded, while shipping tracker Kpler said at least 172 vessels have already passed through the reopened waterway. The UN plan allows two shipping lanes through the strait, in coordination with Oman.
The future of the route remains unclear. Under the U.S.-Iran memorandum, the strait is supposed to remain open without fees for 60 days, after which Iran and Oman are to decide its future in coordination with regional states. President Donald Trump later wrote publicly that there would be no fees in the Strait of Hormuz after 60 days, unless the U.S. collected them. Iran and Oman said on Monday they would continue talks on future shipping management, including maritime services and costs, and form a joint working group with their foreign ministries.
