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- [00:01]
IBM Representative
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- [00:33]
Bloomberg Audio Studios Announcer
Bloomberg Audio Studios Podcasts Radio News
- [00:38]
Bloomberg Radio Host
Now, President Trump has backed away from that plan to impose a 20% charge on cargo shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. But the US has reinstated its blockade of Iranian ships. Navigation through the strait remains dangerous and complicated. Joining us now to discuss Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary general of the International Maritime Oil Organization. Arsenio Dominguez, welcome to Bloomberg radio. The U.S. policy on the Strait of Hormuz has flip flopped. Why do you think the U.S. president dropped those plans for a 20% toll?
- [01:07]
Arsenio Dominguez
It was very clear, particularly last week at the Council of the International Maritime Organization where all the member states, 176 of them, agreed on a resolution to uphold the freedom of navigation on straightforward international transit. And this is something that I have been mentioning from the beginning, since IR first started to raise issues regarding to tolls or fees, there is no international law basis for any of these mechanisms to be put in place. And for us at imo, we first focus on, of course, the safety of the seafarers and then afterwards just maintain and uphold all the principles that allow us to make shipping trade safe around the world.
- [01:53]
Bloomberg Radio Host
But President Trump has floated the idea of US Collected transit fees since April. Trump wants reimbursement for US Naval operations in the strait. He may have reversed course for now. What more can the IMO do about this when it is the US that is deciding?
- [02:15]
Arsenio Dominguez
My call has always been very direct to all the parties or the organization, all the countries as well as the ship owners and ship operators. The more that we all uphold the principal principles and we don't follow on these kind of announcements, the more that international law will prevail. Now, that's one thing that it's also important to highlight in this and there's a conflict ongoing and there's a lot of cross messaging that actually takes place. For me, what matters is that we base all our decisions and all the practices in accordance to what has been happening at IMO for nearly 80 years, the rule of law that continues to allow trade to move over 8% of goods for everyone around the world. So it is the Conflict as well. That is taking these conversations into that level. But I will maintain the message of upholding international law for countries to do the same thing and for companies at this stage, particularly with the volatility, not to take risk to transit through the Strait of our moods. And that would include not making any payments that may be raised.
- [03:24]
Bloomberg Radio Host
Okay. I mean, on that point, of the ships that are making the journey through, and some are, as we've been tracking here at Bloomberg, are they taking unnecessary risks, in your view from the moment
- [03:37]
Arsenio Dominguez
a couple of weeks ago, that we have to pause the evacuation framework in order to relieve the nearly 11,000 seafaretters we had back at the time? We still have 6,000 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. Since the beginning of the conflict. I have reiterated the call for vessels, ship ownership operators, and the flag states not to take the risk because even with naval escorting, it doesn't guarantee 100% that a ship cannot be hit. The important thing right now is to resume the talks, to resume the assistance that we can actually provide also to the seafarers that remain trapped in the region de escalate. And then of course, we can move back step by step to transit through the Strait of Hormuz as we knew it before the conflict began.
- [04:28]
Bloomberg Radio Host
What more can you tell us about how to try to help and alleviate those sailors who are actually trapped there, as you say, the 6,000 sailors who are trapped there, what more can be done?
- [04:42]
Arsenio Dominguez
The first thing that they need right now is continuous assistance when it comes to supplies, medical support whenever needed, as well as the goods that are required for a vessel to continue to be seaworthy in the region. Whenever possible, crew changes can take place. I won't criticize any seafarer that wouldn't want to move into working on a conflict environment. But the situation have deescalated in that respect. And there's possibilities for crew changes to take place in order, at least for those sea fighters that have been there for four months or longer to be able to resume their lives back at home or at least get in touch with the close ones. The next step for us is maintain the conversations with all the countries in the regions using as well the other UN agencies can hold and support those talks that will take us to the next steps. And then, of course, we can start step by step, resuming transit in the Strait of Hormuz.
- [05:42]
Bloomberg Radio Host
Are ships able to find crews that are willing to go through this waterway, given so many people had been trapped in the strait for many, many months?
- [05:53]
Arsenio Dominguez
Yes, we still have around 6,000 seafarers that have been trapped in that region since the conflict began. There has been some movement in relations to crew changes, not at the levels that, of course, that we will expect when the situation is normal, but there are opportunities to do so. And the countries in the regions, I want to also appreciate them because they continue to provide that assistance that support the provisions, essential goods, including water and food to the seafarers. But the longer the situation goes on, the more difficult it will be. And we have to recognize that it's the summer season. Temperatures are also increasing. And for someone living in a ship that now has to some of their supplies, this becomes even more difficult. And that's where we have the challenges of addressing fatigue and mental health on all these innocent seafarers.
- [06:46]
Bloomberg Radio Host
We're speaking to Arsenio Dominguez, the Secretary General of the International Maritime Organization. More strategically, in terms of what the IMO has actually achieved during this conflict, what is your view about Oman maybe charging for mandatory services for transits through the Strait of Hormuz? Do you think that there is a growing acceptance that this is going to happen, that there will be tolls, fees, charges, however you want to phrase it, through the Strait of Hormuz?
- [07:16]
Arsenio Dominguez
No, that's not the line that we're taking. And I've been in conversations with Oman in this respect in several countries at imo, and there are mechanisms that can be put in place in accordance to international law that can help and assist the countries bordering straits for international navigation for the support that is required in managing those straits. We have examples in other parts of the world, these voluntary mechanisms where users of the strait, literal states of the region, even the private sector, the shipping industries, contribute in order to enhance the aids of navigation, protection of the marine environments when it comes to response procedures, as well as any equipment that is required to enhance safety. So there are practices that we know often that we have put in place. That's the kind of conversations that I've been having with the member states, including Oman. And that is a possibility of a solution that we can put forward in the future. But we need to take it step by step. First is, of course, addressing the evacuation of the innocent seafarers. Then is demining the area, the transit separation scheme of the Strait of Hormuz that was established back in 1968. Then we start taking the steps in relation to how we can assist the countries in the region managing the straits, particularly Oman and Iran, in order to resume operations and bring back trade to this important route as soon as possible.
- [08:43]
Bloomberg Radio Host
Are the conversations you're having, though, with countries out of step with what the shipping industry is doing? Because we've seen ships making the journey through even before the ceasefire was declared. Are they simply going to pay whatever is asked simply to get their ships through?
- [08:59]
Arsenio Dominguez
I'm having in my team, we're having regular conversations with industry partners that represent the different parts of the sector at imo. They've been very proactive. They actually have echoed all those calls that have made for ships not to transit during these difficult times. Of course there's always going to be some that will try to take the risk and those are the ones that we are addressing as well. But the message has been continuous and very harmonized across the board in the
- [09:27]
Bloomberg Radio Host
shipping sector, does that include China, everyone?
- [09:31]
Arsenio Dominguez
I follow these conversations with all the member states of IMO and of course everybody plays a role and plays a part in reaching out to the different parties that are engaged in the conflict in how they can assist. I haven't scheduled, I haven't really slowed down with any of the countries of the organization. I always focus first, of course, on those that are mostly affected in the region, but immediately I follow through with all the other member states that can also contribute.
- [09:58]
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- [10:54]
IBM Representative
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- [10:58]
Arsenio Dominguez
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- [11:02]
Public.com Advertiser
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- [11:07]
Bloomberg Audio Studios Announcer
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