Two Chinese container ships attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz have been turned back, despite Iranian assurances that Chinese vessels will be allowed through.
China’s COSCO, which operates CSCL Arctic Ocean and CSCL Indian Ocean, had said earlier this week that it had resumed booking general cargo containers for shipping from Asia to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Iraq.
Although this was the first time a fleet crossing the troubled strait had been attempted by a major fleet since the start of the war, the ships’ return to the Persian Gulf showed “safe passage could not be guaranteed”, Rebecca Gerdes, an analyst at ship-tracking website Kpler, told Reuters.
On Wednesday, Tehran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X that Iran “allowed passage through the Strait of Hormuz to friendly nations including China, Russia, India, Iraq and Pakistan”.
The two vessels both broadcast messages on their AIS vessel monitoring systems saying they had Chinese owners and crews, data on the LSEG platform showed on Friday.
with Reuters
