and often engaging in illegal or illicit activities such as smuggling, sanctions evasion, or the transportation of prohibited goods. The Notice recognized IMO’ s policy recommendations and resolutions addressing such practices, but asserted that the IMO’ s effort has not led to meaningful change or deterrence.
The FMC did not single-out any particular open registry, but it referenced certain recent incidents and inaccurately linked them to certain open registries as a basis for its action( e. g., the Singapore-flag DALI’ s allision with the Francis Scott Key Bridge, the Malta-flag APL QINGDAO’ s narrowly avoided allision with the Verrazzano Bridge, and the MS MELENIA, currently under the Djibouti flag, where crew were left stranded when the tanker was abandoned for the third time). The Notice offered these incidents as examples, yet failed to provide any analysis linking the performance of the flag State to the events at issue. In fact, the references to the DALI and APL QINGDAO were particularly questionable, as Malta and Singapore are among the top-performing registries according to the U. S. Coast Guard’ s 2024 Annual Port State Control report.
According to the Notice, the FMC launched this investigation for the purpose of identifying“ best practices” that contribute to responsible and safe vessel operations and to identify practices that allow or contribute to unsafe conditions that endanger or imperil the reliability and efficiency of ocean shipping.
It appears likely that the current investigation is driven, at least in part, by a growing FMC dialogue with U. S. trade sanctions enforcers in the U. S. Departments of Treasury and State regarding the rapid growth of the“ dark fleet” or“ shadow fleet,” and the role of flag States in allowing vessels to evade or flout U. S. trade sanctions. FMC Chairman Lou Sola raised this issue in an April 2025 speech, in which he announced:“ I have tasked our staff with identifying options on how to address the role flags of convenience play in enabling avoidance of sanctions. Registries hosting outlaw vessels used by reprehensible regimes to facilitate their evasion of international regulations would certainly qualify as conduct warranting the Commission’ s attention and action.”
I have tasked our staff with identifying options on how to address the role flags of convenience play in enabling avoidance of sanctions. Registries hosting outlaw vessels used by reprehensible regimes to facilitate their evasion of international regulations would certainly qualify as conduct warranting the Commission’ s attention and action.
( continued on page 6)
5 • MAINBRACE