THE International Maritime Organization (IMO) will convene today, March 18, its Executive Council to address the impact of the recent closing of the Strait of Hormuz to global shipping and seafarers.
The 36th Extraordinary Session of the IMO Council will take place on March 18-19 at the IMO Headquarters in London to be chaired by Victor Jimenez of Spain.
It will address the impacts on seafarers and shipping of the situation in the Arabian Sea, the Sea of Oman and the Gulf region, particularly in and around the Strait of Hormuz.
The Extraordinary Session is convened following requests from several Council Members.
The Council is the Executive Organ of IMO, consisting of 40 Member States, elected by the IMO Assembly. The Philippines is a member of the Council under Category C; these are states which have special interests in maritime transport or navigation and whose election to the Council will ensure the representation of all major geographic areas of the world. Being one of the world’s leading supplier of seafarers in the global fleet, the Philippines is among the IMO Member States who are greatly affected by the war in the Middle East and the related attacks on vessels.
The war between Iran and US-backed Israel erupted in Feb. 28 with air strikes destroying major infrastructures and claimed hundreds of lives. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed to international navigation, some of the ships who attempted to pass were attacked.
