With the Ceasefire on the Brink, Gulf States Prepare

EU Breaks Deadlock on Russian Sanctions but Defers Maritime Services Ban

Published Apr 24, 2026 6:35 PM by The Maritime Executive

The European Council broke weeks of deadlock, in part after the election loss for Hungarian President Victor Orban, and adopted its 20th sanction package on Russia along with a massive loan to Ukraine. Leaders highlighted that it is the biggest package adopted in two years, but it took weeks of political wrangling to get the package approved. “Today we finally broke the deadlock,” said Kaja Kallas, who speaks for the Council on Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and chairs the...

Iranian Shipping Blockade to Expand Says US as Hormuz Remains at Standstill

Published Apr 24, 2026 5:16 PM by The Maritime Executive

The Pentagon on Friday, during a press briefing on the conflict with Iran, vowed to expand the blockade on shipping while saying it was becoming more effective and stronger. The strategy continues to apply economic pressure on Iran by choking off most shipping, while, however, Iran continues its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz. “We seized their sanctioned ships, and we will seize more,” said U.S. Secretary Pete Hegseth. “Our blockade is growing and going global.” Hegseth pointed to the...

Houthis Remain on the Sideline While Iran Threatens to Widen Conflict

Published Apr 24, 2026 3:36 PM by The Maritime Executive

Senior political figures associated with the IRGC-dominated hardliner faction in the Iranian leadership continue to make escalatory threats in an attempt to pressure the United States to loosen its blockade on traffic entering Iranian ports. The IRGC-linked semi-official news agency Fars has hinted that undersea cables may be at risk of attack, although Iran is short of the capability to carry out such a threat. A deputy to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Esmail Saqab Esfahani, has also threatened that if...

Report: Pirates Hijacked Small Product Tanker off Somalia

Published Apr 24, 2026 3:01 PM by The Maritime Executive

In a developing story, it is being reported that a small product tanker has apparently been seized off the coast of Somalia. The BBC was the first to report the story, saying the product tanker Honour 25 (3,000 dwt) had been commandeered and brought to an anchorage off the northern Somali coast. EUNAVFOR Atalanta has not yet acknowledged the incident nor the local authorities, according to the BBC. However, it comes during a busy week in which there was an...

Shipping

MOL Adds Wind Propulsion to In-Service Coal Carrier and LCO2 Carrier Design

Continuing to build on the interest in wind-assisted propulsion, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) is highlighting two further advancements for its solid sail “Wind Challenger.” It worked in partnership to develop the commercial designs for the sail and has begun its deployment as part of its overall strategy to reduce GHG emissions. Developed by MOL and Oshima Shipbuilding, the Wind Challenger is a rigid sail system that can sense wind direction and speed in real time and provides fully automatic control...

Tugs & Salvage

Sapphire Princess (file image courtesy Sabung Hamster / CC BY SA 4.0)

Cruise Ship Sapphire Princess Recovers Five Bodies From the Mediterranean

On Tuesday, the crew of the cruise ship Sapphire Princess took on the difficult task of recovering five bodies from the waters of the western Mediterranean. After departing Cagliari on Monday evening on a routine voyage to Cartagena, Sapphire Princess encountered signs of a distress situation at a position about 80 nautical miles to the northwest of Algiers. After a lifejacket was spotted in the water, the crew turned back on their course and launched a rescue boat to investigate....

Government

The Horn of Africa, with principal military bases and logistic hubs (Google Earth/CJRC)

Churn in Horn of Africa Political Alliances

The Horn of Africa, embracing Eritrea with its Red Sea coastline, Djibouti and the component parts of what used to be Somalia, is in a state of flux, buffeted by the changing political situation in the neighborhood. How matters settle will have a direct impact on the safety and flow of merchant traffic through the Suez Canal and the Bab el Mandeb, a trade route using the Maritime Security Transit Corridor (MSTC) which recently carried just under 15% of world...

Corporate News

Disney and Port of San Diego Extend Homeport Through At Least 2031

Disney Cruise Line and the Port of San Diego today announced a new agreement through at least 2031, which will approximately double the number of Disney cruises out of San Diego each year. For guests, this means more opportunities to embark on magical vacations to Catalina Island, Baja and the Mexican Riviera, with a broader range of seasonal itineraries and more frequent departures. “San Diego has been an important part of our West Coast operations for more than a decade,...

Cruise Ships

Oceania Cruises to Convert Older Ship for Luxury, Long Cruises

Oceania Cruises announced plans to convert one of the line’s oldest cruise ships as the platform for long, luxury cruises. The brand has been working to move more upscale in its offerings while also pursuing a strong expansion program that will add five new, larger cruise ships. The brand was launched in 2002 using two small cruise ships, Regatta and Insignia, as a reincarnation of the failed Renaissance Cruises. The original company was building six 30,000 gross ton cruise ships...

Ports

Ukraine Destroys Sea Drone as Russian Strikes Odesa Ports and Cargo Ships

Ukrainian officials report that Russia continues to target the port infrastructure in the Greater Odesa region in an effort to disrupt commercial trade. They assert the recent strikes on commercial shipping are deliberate acts by the enemy. Overnight, another cargo ship was struck while sailing in the corridor that Ukraine has maintained for two and a half years for commercial shipping. According to the reports, it was the third commercial ship struck recently, however the Ukrainian Navy also released images...

Shipping

MOL Adds Wind Propulsion to In-Service Coal Carrier and LCO2 Carrier Design

Tugs & Salvage

Cruise Ship Sapphire Princess Recovers Five Bodies From the Mediterranean

Government

Churn in Horn of Africa Political Alliances

Corporate News

Disney and Port of San Diego Extend Homeport Through At Least 2031

Cruise Ships

Oceania Cruises to Convert Older Ship for Luxury, Long Cruises

Ports

Ukraine Destroys Sea Drone as Russian Strikes Odesa Ports and Cargo Ships

Offshore

U.S. is Negotiating to Cancel More Offshore Wind Leases

Executives at the French company Engie confirmed today that they are in discussions with U.S. officials about possibly canceling their offshore wind farm leases. Last month, the administration agreed to reimburse TotalEnergies for its offshore wind leases and hinted it might use the same technique with others, although advocates and lawmakers are questioning the legal authority. The Trump administration said in March that it had agreed to reimburse TotalEnergies nearly $1 billion it had paid to acquire a large lease...

Shipbuilding

Paying the Piper

The average merchant ship has a service life of 20-25 years, in some cases more. That's a long time to stay in compliance with all the rules that govern shipping, and owners know they have to set themselves up for success. It's not enough to meet regulations on day one: Every ship system has to be supported throughout a lifetime of industrial service if it's going to satisfy inspectors on day 5,000. Without solid backing from the original equipment manufacturer...

Environment

Winning Formula

For residents living near ports, seafarers working aboard ships and passengers stepping ashore, the question is no longer abstract: Why am I still breathing this? Sulphur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) from ship exhausts are a daily reality in many port cities. A 2023 World Bank report estimated that more than 250 million people globally are exposed to air pollution around ports, underscoring that maritime emissions are not only a climate issue but a public-health issue....

Business

Maritime Executive March April 2026 promotion

The Maritime Executive's Annual Energy Edition is Now Available Online

“Strait Outa Compton" That's the witty title of View From the E.U. columnist Erik Kravets' tongue-in-cheek comparison of N.W.A's hip-hop hit from 1988 and Iran's current strategy in the Gulf. But it's not all tongue-in-cheek, as you'll find out. Give it a read. You won't be disappointed. The war in Iran is, understandably, the subject of several articles in this, our annual "Energy Exploration & Production" edition. Allen Brooks, Eye on Energy columnist, uses it as backdrop for why the...

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With the Ceasefire on the Brink, Gulf States Prepare

EU Breaks Deadlock on Russian Sanctions but Defers Maritime Services Ban

Iranian Shipping Blockade to Expand Says US as Hormuz Remains at Standstill

Houthis Remain on the Sideline While Iran Threatens to Widen Conflict

Report: Pirates Hijacked Small Product Tanker off Somalia

MOL Adds Wind Propulsion to In-Service Coal Carrier and LCO2 Carrier Design

Cruise Ship Sapphire Princess Recovers Five Bodies From the Mediterranean

Churn in Horn of Africa Political Alliances

Disney and Port of San Diego Extend Homeport Through At Least 2031

Oceania Cruises to Convert Older Ship for Luxury, Long Cruises

Ukraine Destroys Sea Drone as Russian Strikes Odesa Ports and Cargo Ships

From Fossil Fuels to Shore Power With the Port of San Diego

From Local to Global: Genoa Maritime Forum to Bring the Industry Together

Estonian Solutions Support Cruise Industry’s Green Transition

MOL Adds Wind Propulsion to In-Service Coal Carrier and LCO2 Carrier Design

Cruise Ship Sapphire Princess Recovers Five Bodies From the Mediterranean

Churn in Horn of Africa Political Alliances

Disney and Port of San Diego Extend Homeport Through At Least 2031

Oceania Cruises to Convert Older Ship for Luxury, Long Cruises

Ukraine Destroys Sea Drone as Russian Strikes Odesa Ports and Cargo Ships

U.S. is Negotiating to Cancel More Offshore Wind Leases

Paying the Piper

Winning Formula

The Maritime Executive's Annual Energy Edition is Now Available Online

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