Since Malaysia announced on December 20 that it would ban all Israeli-owned and flagged vessels, as well as any vessels bound for Israel, from calling at Malaysian ports, another shipping company has announced the suspension of Israeli services.
On January 7, a number of overseas ** newspapers, including Israel's Le Globes, reported that China Ocean Shipping Corporation (COSCO), one of the world's largest container shipping companies, had decided to stop calling at Israeli ports. This development comes against the backdrop of growing tensions in Red Sea shipping.
According to reports, COSCO's suspension of calls to Israeli ports will seriously affect Israel and the Far East**. In addition, the Israeli ZIM Integrated Shipping Company, which works closely with it, will have to operate more ships on the Far East route, which may lead to higher transportation costs. In addition, the port of Haifa, which relies on the call of many COSCO vessels, will also be directly affected.
The specific details behind COSCO's decision have not yet been disclosed, but given the strategic importance of the Red Sea as a global shipping corridor and the current dire situation, the move represents a subtle change in the dynamics of world shipping. The representative of COSCO in Israel did not comment on this matter. As news broke, Israeli port authorities are actively investigating the impact of the suspension.