The Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has condemned in the strongest terms the threats and attacks against merchant vessels and the alleged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, in line with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2817. The extraordinary session, held in London at the request of several Member States, gathered more than 120 countries, including the 40 that make up the executive body of the organization, and adopted a series of decisions aimed at protecting the safety of commercial navigation and the wellbeing of the civilian mariners affected by the crisis.
The Council has called for a coordinated approach at the international level regarding maritime security and has reiterated that the exercise of rights and freedoms of navigation by merchant and commercial vessels, in accordance with international law, must be respected by all parties. The declaration constitutes an institutional response from the highest executive body of the IMO to a situation that has severely disrupted maritime trade flows in one of the most strategic arteries of global goods and hydrocarbons traffic.
Among the most relevant decisions adopted during the session is the order addressed to the Secretary-General of the IMO, Arsenio Domínguez, to immediately initiate the necessary actions to establish a safe maritime passage framework that allows for the evacuation of the merchant vessels currently confined in the Gulf region. This measure, conceived as provisional and urgent, aims to protect the lives of the crew members and ensure safe commercial navigation by avoiding military attacks.
Secretary-General Domínguez has stated he is "prepared to start working immediately on the negotiations to establish a humanitarian framework that allows for the evacuation of all trapped vessels and mariners." However, he has warned that "for this to materialize, I will need the understanding, commitment, and, above all, concrete actions from all relevant countries and stakeholders."
The Council has demanded that all attacks against vessels affecting innocent civilian mariners cease immediately. In parallel, it has urged Member States to ensure the continuous supply of water, food, fuel, and other essential supplies to vessels that currently cannot leave the region. The situation of the trapped crew members has been one of the central aspects of the session, and the Council has called on States to facilitate crew change operations in accordance with international standards, safeguard the health and wellbeing of the affected mariners, and ensure that they can maintain communication with their families.
The IMO has also expressed its concern about the navigation conditions in the area, where satellite navigation systems (GNSS) are suffering extensive interference and spoofing, increasing the risks for vessels transiting through the area. The Council has requested that the coordinated response take into account the fatigue and pressure that crew members onboard endure, the captain's supreme authority over navigation decisions, and the dangers associated with transit in waters where the reliability of positioning instruments is severely compromised.
In his closing remarks, Secretary-General Domínguez pointed out that "inaction is not an option" and that "words alone are not enough," urging all Member States to take responsibility for protecting those who work at sea and safeguarding the principle of freedom of navigation.
The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz has direct implications for global maritime trade. Through this passage of barely 33 kilometers in width at its narrowest point transits a substantial part of the global oil and liquefied natural gas traffic, as well as a significant volume of container and bulk cargo that connects the Gulf countries with international markets. The interruption or restriction of navigation through this route affects supply chains worldwide and has an immediate impact on energy markets and shipping costs.
The situation adds to the disruptions that international maritime transport has been experiencing at other critical points, such as the Red Sea, where attacks by Houthi rebels have forced numerous shipping companies to divert their vessels via the Cape of Good Hope route. The accumulation of instability hotspots in the main arteries of commercial navigation is placing unprecedented operational and economic pressure on the shipping sector in recent decades and is forcing shipping companies to seek alternative routes and develop multimodal logistics solutions to maintain the continuity of trade flows.
Several shipping companies, including CMA CGM, have already activated alternative logistics corridors that combine maritime, land, and rail transport to avoid transit via the Strait of Hormuz, using ports located south of the maritime passage such as Khor Fakkan, Fujairah, and Sohar, as well as the port of Jeddah in the Red Sea and ports of the Sultanate of Oman.
The extraordinary session of the IMO Council highlights the seriousness of the situation and the determination of the organization to seek a solution that guarantees the safety of vessels and crew members trapped in the area. The establishment of the safe passage framework ordered to the Secretary-General will require the participation of the parties involved in the conflict and the cooperation of the coastal States, making the negotiations a process of high diplomatic complexity whose outcome will determine the normalization of maritime traffic in the Gulf.