Second South Korean Ship Escapes Strait of Hormuz; Foreign Charterer Led Negotiations

[Anchor]

A South Korean vessel that had been stranded in the Strait of Hormuz successfully exited the area yesterday (June 10). This marks the second such departure, following an HMM oil tanker last month. It has been confirmed that this time, the negotiations were led not by the South Korean government, but by the foreign company that chartered the ship.

Reporter Jeong Seong-jin has the story.

[Reporter]

The vessel *Lebretha*, operated by SK Shipping, safely cleared the Strait of Hormuz yesterday.

The LNG carrier is currently passing through waters off the coast of Pakistan with 27 crew members on board, including eight South Koreans.

While this is the second escape of a South Korean ship following the *Universal Winner* of HMM, which exited the strait on May 20, the South Korean government was not involved in the passage negotiations for this vessel.

The charterer, or the entity leasing the ship, is QatarEnergy, a state-owned enterprise in Qatar, and the LNG was destined for Pakistan. Given Pakistan's ties to both the United States and Iran through previous negotiation mediation, the charterer was able to coordinate with the Pakistani government to secure the ship's passage.

[Kim Doo-young / Chairman of the SK Shipping Labor Union: There was some concern about whether it would be okay, but we were told, 'It is fine to proceed through coordination between Pakistan and Iran.' So, the ship departed, and there were no particular restrictions.]

There are now 24 South Korean ships and 139 South Korean crew members remaining inside the Strait of Hormuz.

However, with Iran having blocked the Strait of Hormuz once again, it remains uncertain when they will be able to leave.

Small and medium-sized shipping companies have expressed frustration, claiming that while large vessels carrying crude oil and LNG operated by major conglomerates have managed to exit, the government has not been providing adequate information regarding negotiations with Iran.

[Representative of a Small/Medium Shipping Company: (The government) is only exercising control, and we don't feel protected or that we are receiving any help at all.]

Desperate for a solution, some are searching for ways to leave on their own, but to no avail.

[Representative of another Small/Medium Shipping Company: (The cargo owner) told us to contact the U.S. Navy. We sent an email with the vessel's information, but there has been no reply.]

While the government maintains that it is too dangerous to force the passage of South Korean vessels given the heightened tensions, small and medium-sized shipping companies have requested an emergency meeting with the government.

(Video reporting: Kim Han-gyeol, Video editing: Kim Ho-jin, Graphics: Seo Seung-hyun)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.