Container Ship with French Owner Passes Through Strait of Hormuz
The vessel, Kribi, operated by the French shipping group CMA CGM, crossed the strategic waterway—which has been effectively blocked by Iran since the escalation of the Middle East conflict—to exit the Gulf in the afternoon.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – A container ship registered in Malta and declared a French owner successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, according to maritime tracking data analyzed by AFP.
The vessel, Kribi, operated by the French shipping group CMA CGM, crossed the strategic waterway—which has been effectively blocked by Iran since the escalation of the Middle East conflict—to exit the Gulf in the afternoon. By Friday morning, the ship was off the coast of Muscat, Oman, still broadcasting “owner France” on its transponder, a field normally used for destination information.
The transit comes amid heightened diplomatic tensions over the Strait. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned the United Nations Security Council against taking what Tehran described as “provocative action,” ahead of a planned vote on a Bahrain-backed draft resolution aimed at authorizing “defensive” measures to protect commercial shipping in the Strait. That vote was later postponed indefinitely.
The Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil and gas shipments, has seen near-total disruption since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, raising concerns among Gulf nations and the international community. While the draft resolution had the backing of the United States and several Gulf states, objections from key Security Council members—including Russia, China, and France—contributed to the postponement.
The Kribi’s passage marks a rare successful transit and underscores the ongoing complexities of shipping in one of the world’s most sensitive chokepoints.