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SINGAPORE: The safety and well-being of seafarers caught in the Middle East conflict are at the \u201ctop of our mind\u201d, and that the authorities are working hard to ensure their safe return, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong on Tuesday (Apr 21).<\/p>\n
As for Singapore’s decision not to negotiate with any parties on the right for seafarers to pass the Strait of Hormuz, Mr Gan said it was important for Singapore to “stay on course”.<\/p>\n
“Sometimes you have to make a hard decision, that this is a matter of principle, that we cannot negotiate something that is a matter of right,” he said during a fireside chat as part of the Singapore Maritime Week.<\/p>\n
He was answering questions from two audience members, who were from the maritime industry and had asked about the welfare and evacuation plans for seafarers trapped in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n
In his response, Mr Gan said the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) is working “very hard” to maintain contact with the ship owners and operators to ensure the safety and security of our seafarers on board our ships\u201d.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cAt the same time, we will be working very closely with the ports along the coast to render support and assistance where necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Since the war broke out at the end of February, Singapore-based shipping companies have 29 vessels stuck in the strait, according to a report by international news agency AFP.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After ceasefire talks with Iran earlier this month ended without an agreement, the US enforced its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n
Responding to another question from an audience member on the \u201cdiplomatic initiations\u201d that Singapore has to free marine vessels that are stuck in the Middle East amid the conflict, Mr Gan reiterated Singapore\u2019s stance of not negotiating on the right of passage.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot negotiate with Iran because the right of transit passage is a matter of right,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Should Singapore negotiate, and there is \u201csome agreement\u201d that is arrived at, it would mean that there will be a condition or conditions that Singapore must comply with in order to have that safe passage.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it is not conditional. The right is protected under UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), and therefore we cannot possibly enter into a negotiation,\u201d said Mr Gan, to which the audience broke into applause.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope I made that clear, because we are very concerned about the safety and also the cargo that we do want to try to get them out and continue to ensure safe passage through the Straits of Hormuz, but it is important for us to continue to uphold the principle that it is a matter of right,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“It is not negotiable.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n