00:00We've heard the president talking a lot about the strait. We've heard the Iranians talking a lot about the strait.
00:05We've talked a lot about it. What is the current status of traffic through that choke point?
00:10Have you seen an uptick in recent days? And are some of those sailors we've been talking about able to
00:14get out?
00:16Always a pleasure being with you here. The reality is that we're seeing a very small increase,
00:21increase on the trade and transit of ships through the Strait of Hormuz,
00:25mostly on what we now know is a new corridor that the Iran has established,
00:32which, of course, has not gone through the procedures here at IMO and is not taking into account the agreements
00:38that we have established since 1968
00:40with the mechanism that we have in place. So right now, even though there's a slight increase in the number
00:46of vessels,
00:46we still have the 20,000 seafirters and over 1,500 ships trapped inside the Persian Gulf.
00:53That number is still about 20,000. That's where it was when we spoke to you last week.
00:58That's correct. Because if we look at the transits, there has been a couple of days, six or around 10
01:05transits,
01:06but they still know the numbers of 130 transits a day. So the reality is that the situations for the
01:13seafirters
01:14continues to be quite dire in the area.
01:17Arsenio, there's been some discussion about the possibility of Iran collecting tolls in order for ships to pass through.
01:23The strait. If that's how this situation resolves itself, is that acceptable to you?
01:29Of course not. And I already have sent that message to Iran as well.
01:33The reality is that this is an international strait. And in accordance to international law,
01:38no country has the right to introduce tolls on these waterways.
01:42And since 1968, we established a mechanism, both with the participation of Iran and Oman,
01:49and it's been very safe and secure. And that's where we want to go back as soon as this war
01:55comes to an end.
01:56I also want to ask you, there's a New York Times report out this morning saying that Iran is unable
02:01to find some of the mines
02:03that it planted in the strait, and that's part of the problem.
02:06It says, on Wednesday, the Iranian foreign minister said the strait would be open to traffic with due consideration of
02:11technical limitations.
02:13American officials have said Mr. Argashi's comments about technical limitations
02:16was a reference to Iran's inability to quickly find or remove these mines.
02:21Is that accurate? Is this an issue in opening the strait? And how concerned are you about this?
02:27There's always a concern in case there are additional challenges to the merchant ships and, of course, the seafetters.
02:34The reality is that, as of today, I don't have any official confirmations that there are mines in the regions.
02:41We will have to do an assessment, and that is something that we will need the assistance from some countries
02:46that actually have come forward, and I mentioned already that they are prepared to assist.
02:50But only after the conflict has come to an end.
02:53What would signify to you that the strait is indeed ready for that next step,
02:58for these countries to come and help identify and possibly remove those mines?
03:02What do you need to see?
03:05Precisely, it's a ceasefire and a confirmation from all the parties in the region,
03:09particularly those involved in the conflict, that they will not be targeting ships.
03:12Because right now, that is the message that we have received from Iran,
03:17and it's something that continues to be detrimental and something that we will not accept.
03:23But before all that happens, until the strait, we have the guarantees that the strait is safe for the ships
03:29and the seafetters,
03:30I will not be calling for anyone to transit the region.
03:33I want to ask you, even if these negotiations are fruitful, and that's a big if,
03:37there's a difference between the strait being nominally open and functionally open.
03:42And all the things we've talked about, and the risk profile, even if there is an agreement, it seems to
03:47me, really increases.
03:48Is there a concern that even if Iran and the U.S. say the strait is open,
03:53that seafarers and companies still won't be willing to make this voyage for the foreseeable future?
03:59This is also linked to what is going to come out from this weekend.
04:03And of course, I'm hopeful that there will be positive results from these negotiations.
04:07In the moment that we have those green lights, we already prepared here at IMO,
04:12following the decision of our council a couple of weeks ago,
04:15a mechanism in a list of vessels in coordination with the industry representatives,
04:22of how the vessels need to start transiting the strait of Hormuz,
04:26a specific order, because this mechanism has been there for several years,
04:30the countries know how to monitor the vessels.
04:33So we are ready to start rolling it out.
04:36The difficulty is that we will not do it until it is safe.
04:40Arsenio, this is like the worst case scenario when it comes to global shipping.
04:43This is the thing that the analysts were tasked with doing in years past,
04:47because it was such an unforeseeable thing that could happen.
04:51When the world does get to the other side of this,
04:54how do you prevent it from happening again?
04:58What we've been noticing, particularly in recent years,
05:02how geopolitical situations are impacting shipping,
05:05and shipping is being used as collateral damage.
05:08The moment that we actually come to an end on this specific crisis,
05:12we just have to put in place the same operations that we have in the past,
05:16continue to have the negotiations and the agreements with the countries
05:18to play the role of monitoring the safety of the vessels,
05:22their security, and the protection of the environment.
05:25It has been going on for many years,
05:27and we didn't have a problem there since before the war.
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