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Red Sea crisis, Panama Canal drought pose no risk to RI shipping
Neither the Red Sea crisis nor the low water levels in the Panama Canal will affect Indonesia's seafaring trade, despite the disruption in international shipping, the national shipping association has said.
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Bahamian-flagged cargo ship Galaxy Leader (right) approaches the Yemeni Red Sea port of Hodeidah on Nov. 22, 2023, in this picture taken during an organized tour by Yemen's Houthi rebels, which had seized the vessel two days earlier. (AFP/AFP)
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he Indonesian National Shipowners Association (INSA) has said that although the Red Sea crisis and the Panama Canal drought have driven up international shipping costs, neither posed a risk to the country’s shipping companies, as none sailed those routes.
“There is no impact to national shipping, because [Indonesian vessels] do not navigate in the conflict area,” INSA chairperson Carmelita Hartoto said, as quoted by Kontan on Monday, referring to the maritime region affected by the Israel-Hamas war.
It was a different story altogether for international shipping, Carmelita said, as the Red Sea crisis had pushed up rates 55 to 63 percent for freight shipping between Asia and Europe.
Since early January, the Houthi rebel group, which controls most of the Yemeni coast along the Red Sea as well as its capital Sanaa, has been attacking commercial vessels with alleged links to Israel in the major trade waterway to express its solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
In response, United States and British forces launched air strikes targeting 16 Houthi-controlled locations last Thursday, CNN reported, prompting retaliatory Houthis attacks on US vessels in the Red Sea.
The rebel group attacked a US navy destroyer on Sunday, followed by an assault on a US-owned container ship on Monday, Al Jazeera reported.
Read also: Biden warns Houthis of further steps after US, UK strikes
