The attacks by the Houthi militia in the Red Sea continue. The shipping company Maersk therefore instructed four container ships to sail through the Suez Canal again and then take the long route around Africa to Asia.
To avoid possible attacks by Houthi rebels, the Danish shipping company Maersk is sending four container ships from the Red Sea back through the Suez Canal and on the long journey around Africa to Asia.
The “Maersk Genoa”, “Maersk Londrina”, “Ebba Maersk” and “Gjertrud Maersk” have been lying south of the Saudi Arabian port of Jeddah in the Red Sea for the past few days due to attacks by Houthi rebels from Yemen. They will be rerouted around the Cape of Good Hope, according to Maersk’s schedule.
A fifth ship, the Maersk Utah, which is also in the area, has not yet been diverted. But it will not go past Yemen, according to a company spokesman.
Maersk suspends trips through the Suez Canal
Maersk, which briefly tried to resume Red Sea voyages after a break last week, said on Tuesday that its container ships would again avoid the Suez Canal route.
However, the five Maersk ships heading to Asia had already crossed the canal from the north at this point and were heading south past Yemen. In addition to the significantly longer journey time, a return journey through the Suez Canal also entails new fees and additional fuel costs for the journey around the Cape of Good Hope. This raises fears of price increases.
Maersk said last month that it had imposed a transit disruption surcharge (TDS) and a peak season surcharge (PSS), bringing the cost of a standard 20-foot container heading from China to northern Europe to a total of $700.
High costs due to diversion
The Suez Canal significantly shortens the route between Asia and Europe. But the Houthi militia has repeatedly attacked merchant ships in the Red Sea with drones, missiles and boats since October. They want to show their support for the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, which is fighting against Israel in the Gaza Strip. A Maersk ship was also attacked on Saturday.
Because of the attacks, many shipping companies are rerouting their ships around Africa – a major detour.
Another attack by Houthi rebels
Meanwhile, the Houthi militia attempted to attack ships in the Red Sea with a maritime drone. The unmanned vehicle came within a few kilometers of US Navy ships before it exploded, said the head of US naval operations in the Middle East, Brad Cooper.
On Wednesday, the United States and several allied states issued a “final warning” to the Houthis. It called on them to stop attacks on ships in the Red Sea. Otherwise they would face military action, it was said.
In December, the US formed a multinational coalition to protect shipping in the Red Sea. The US-led coalition includes, among others, Bahrain, France, Great Britain, Italy, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles and Spain. The federal government recently said that Germany is continuing to examine the question of possible participation in the operation.
Export association calls for better protection of sea routes
The German Foreign Trade Association criticizes the fact that Germany is not a member of the alliance and calls for Germany to be more committed to securing sea routes. “Due to the tightened security situation at ‘Bab al-Mandab’, the access to the Red Sea and thus to the Suez Canal, our supply chains are being disrupted again,” said Dirk Jandura, President of the Federal Association of Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services (BGA).
“But I am very surprised that we, as a large foreign trading nation, are not in the front row for the new multinational security initiative ‘Prosperity Guardian’ initiated by the USA.”
Germany should have the utmost interest in safe sea routes to and from Europe, said Jandura. However, German companies have learned from past crises. “Our supply chains are now significantly more diversified and therefore more resilient than in 2021, when the Suez Canal was blocked for weeks,” said the Foreign Trade President. “I therefore do not expect any major supply problems; there will only be short delivery delays in individual cases.”