The US changed its mind about offering ships a way out of the Strait of Hormuz. Where does that leave shipping companies?

By Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN

(CNN) — For tens of thousands of seafarers on the 1,600 ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz, “Project Freedom” was anything but.

President Donald Trump’s operation to “guide” ships through the strait lasted just 48 hours. Only two ships were guided through.

Now, shipping companies and stranded seafarers are again left without a safe way out, unwilling to bear the risk of transit. Despite the ceasefire, missiles continue to fly over the 21-mile waterway.

“Nothing short of a true peace accord that is demonstrated and proven will gain the confidence of the commercial shipping community,” said Gene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles.

Seroka, who spent half a decade working for the major shipping company American President Lines in the Middle East, said he has not spoken to a single shipping executive willing to move their cargo and personal even alongside the US military.

For more than two months, shipping lines have been looking for windows to leave the strait. In normal times, 120 vessels move through the Strait of Hormuz every single day, with many ferrying 20% of the world’s oil supply.

Now letting ships leave would endanger both cargo and personnel. Any damage to a multimillion-dollar ship would set companies back financially and logistically. Insurers have wartime clauses in their contracts that do not require them to cover vessels stuck in the middle of a war. So, moving ships without that financial backing risks being extraordinarily costly.

The Trump administration called multiple shipping lines about “Project Freedom” to offer their service, Secretary Rubio said Tuesday. Few took them up on it.

Danish shipping giant Maersk confirmed Monday its ship was one of the two guided out by the US military. The vessel had been “unable to depart” the Persian Gulf since fighting broke out in February, the company told CNN in a statement.

A total of 10 vessels, including the two guided by the US military, passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, according to S&P Global Commodities at Sea.

Hapag-Lloyd, another top shipping line, told CNN Wednesday it had been exploring using the US military to get its remaining four ships out of the strait before “Project Freedom” was paused.

“As the situation has changed again overnight, we need to see if and how it will work,” said Nils Haupt, senior director group communications, at Hapag-Lloyd.

Another attack on a container vessel overnight, this one resulting in injuries, highlights the continued risk, Haupt added.

Thirty-two ships have been hit with missiles since the beginning of the war, resulting in 10 deaths and at least a dozen injuries, according to the International Maritime Organization, or IMO.

The IMO continues to urge ships to “exercise maximum caution” and says that “naval escorts are not a sustainable long-term solution.”

The United States and Iran are getting closer to an agreement to end the war, a regional source familiar with negotiations told CNN on Wednesday. However, the Trump administration cautioned that talks have fallen apart at the last minute before.

After Trump announced the pause on “Project Freedom,” Iran said safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz is possible under “new procedures.” Iran launched the Persian Gulf Strait Authority that would regulate passage through the strait, including tolls, according to Iran’s state-owned Press TV.

The United States has previously warned that Iran does not have the authority to control the waterway.

Still, leaving the Strait of Hormuz, even with a US military guide, requires a “very specific assessment” for shipping companies, according to Seroka.

“They’re going to need a lot more confidence in the safety and security of passing through the straight before they take that step,” he said.

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