Global shipping industry to appeal to the UN for maritime security and the

• Global shipping industry to appeal to the UN for maritime security and the protection of seafarers in the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz –

The Bank of Korea recently released data showing that South Korea’s “import-to-GDP ratio” is “102% in 2022.”

The “ratio of imports and exports to GDP” refers to the ratio of the total amount of exports, imports, foreign import factor income, and foreign payment factor income to GDP, and can be expressed in the following way.

“Export-to-GDP ratio = {(total exports + total imports + foreign income factor income + foreign payment factor income) ÷ nominal GDP} × 100”.

Here, the export amount is the amount of goods and services produced domestically for one year sold to other countries through trade, and the import amount is the amount of goods and services produced abroad sold to Korea through trade.

In addition, foreign-receiving factor income refers to income received by its citizens in exchange for providing production factors such as labor and capital abroad, and foreign-receiving factor income refers to income generated by foreign labor and capital participating in domestic production activities.

However, according to the Bank of Korea’s latest data, Korea’s .” ratio of imports and exports to GDP” was 53% in 1990, but it is 102% in 2022, and the ratio is growing year by year (see data).

The ratio of imports and exports to GDP” is so large that 99.7% of Korea’s imports and exports are made up of sea transportation.

Therefore, in Korea, the shipping industry is like the spine of the Korean economy, and it is an industry that the state must protect.

However, the capture of general merchant ships and missile attacks by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, which began in December 2023, have effectively halted the Mediterranean route through the Red Sea.

And on 13 April 2024, “MSC Aries” were seized by Iranian forces in the Strait of Hormuz.

However, the Suez Canal, the Bab-El Mandev Strait, and the Strait of Hormuz have “a quarter of global trade” passing through the Suez Canal, Bab-El Mandeb Street, and Street of Hormuz, through which a quarter of all global trade flows.

So, on April 19, 2024 (local time), the marine news website “gGaptain” is appealing to the United Nations under the following title.

“Shipping Industry Issues Plea to UN to Protect Maritime Security and Seafarers”.
In other words, “The shipping industry is petitioning the UN for maritime security and the protection of seafarers.”

This open letter, co-signed by 16 marine industry associations and social partners, calls for urgent assistance and reminds UN member states of responsibility under international law (An open letter co-signed by 16 maritime industry associations and social partners, calls for urgent assistance and reminds counties about the international law).

In other words, the United Nations and UN member states are petitioning for the protection of ships and sailors passing through the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz.

As mentioned earlier, if the Republic of Korea fails in the trade war because the sea route is blocked, the Republic of Korea will starve to death.

If I were the president of the Republic of Korea, I would immediately consult with the Sri Lankan government to create a temporary naval base in Sri Lanka and protect Korean merchant ships and sailors through Hormuz and the Red Sea.

Alfred Thayer Mahan, a U.S. Navy admiral, Navy strategist, and historian, wrote in his book The Influence of Sea Power on History that “a country’s maritime power determines its rise and fall.”