• The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) Secretary General was invited to brief an Arria-Formula meeting of the UN Security Council convened by the Kingdom of Bahrain.
• At the meeting, ICS reaffirmed the importance of freedom of navigation and protecting the maritime industry.
• The meeting brought UN representatives and invited guests together to discuss the deteriorating maritime security environment amid heightened geopolitical tensions, with particular focus on the security situation in the Persian Gulf.

Secretary General of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), Thomas A. Kazakos, addressed the United Nations Security Council on the critical importance of protecting maritime security, freedom of navigation, and the established international legal framework governing the world’s oceans, in New York yesterday.

The International Chamber of Shipping was invited to brief an Arria-Formula meeting of the UN Security Council, convened by the Kingdom of Bahrain and chaired by Bahrain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr Abdullatif Al Zayani. The meeting brought UN representatives and invited guests together to discuss the deteriorating maritime security environment amid heightened geopolitical tensions, with particular focus on the security situation in the Persian Gulf.

Representing the international shipping industry, Thomas Kazakos outlined the profound consequences that insecurity at sea has for seafarers, ships, global trade, and the wider international economy.

The ICS Secretary General emphasised the fundamental principle of freedom of navigation and stated: “The ability of commercial ships to navigate international waterways safely, predictably and without unnecessary impediment, is crucial to international maritime law and to the global trade system… Shipping must not be held to ransom.”

“The current situation in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding region demonstrates the importance of this issue. It is one of the world’s most critical arteries of international commerce, carrying approximately one quarter of global seaborne oil trade, as well as major volumes of LNG and fertilisers. The ongoing disruption has been extraordinary.”

ICS stressed commercial vessels and their crews must not become collateral to wider political or military disputes, and the established international rules governing navigation must be respected.“Straits cannot become a place where commercial shipping is required to obtain permission, negotiate passage, or accept arbitrary restrictions, simply because geopolitical tensions have escalated. This is not a privilege to be granted or withdrawn according to the political circumstances of the day.”

The meeting also provided an opportunity to highlight the human cost of the deteriorating security environment.

“Seafarers are transporting food, energy, medicines, raw materials and essential goods to communities around the world. They are civilians. They are not parties to geopolitical conflicts, and their welfare is of the utmost importance.”

In closing his address, Thomas Kazakos called for a return to freedom of navigation, reaffirmed the stance that international straits must not become toll roads, and that merchant ships and seafarers must not be held to ransom.

Thomas Kazakos said “The International Chamber of Shipping welcomed the opportunity to brief members of the Security Council and reiterated the shipping industry’s commitment to working with governments and international organisations to strengthen maritime security and protect the principles on which global trade depends.

I would like to sincerely thank the Kingdom of Bahrain and His Excellency Dr Al Zayani for their kind invitation.”

Arria-Formula meetings are informal meetings that allow individuals and organisations to engage in direct dialogue with members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).