01.04.2026 13:40
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu made a statement regarding Turkish ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Minister Uraloğlu said, "There are 14 Turkish ships with owners. There is no request for three of the ships to leave. We are in constant communication with the crew; there is no humanitarian problem."
The Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, answered questions from the press before the AK Party Group Meeting. Minister Uraloğlu provided the latest status regarding Turkish-owned ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The conflicts that began with the attacks of the US and Israel on Iran and have entered their second month have seriously affected maritime traffic in the region. The developments closely monitored by Ankara are particularly concentrated in the Strait of Hormuz, which is critical for global energy trade. In the strait, where approximately 20% of the world's oil and natural gas shipments are carried out, ship traffic has nearly come to a standstill following the attacks and Iran's countermeasures.
"THERE ARE 14 TURKISH-OWNED SHIPS IN THE REGION"
Minister Uraloğlu stated that there are currently 14 Turkish-owned ships in the region and said they are in contact with all personnel.
"THERE IS NO REQUEST FOR THE EXIT OF 3 SHIPS"
Uraloğlu made the following statements:
"The difficulties in Hormuz continue. We are making efforts to see if we can evacuate them from there in coordination with our Ministry of Foreign Affairs. There are 14 Turkish-owned ships there. We are in contact with all the crew. There is no request for the exit of 3 ships. Discussions regarding the evacuation of the others are ongoing, but at the moment, there has not yet been an opportunity for evacuation. However, we are in constant communication with the personnel. I would especially like to emphasize that they do not have any humanitarian problems. We are closely monitoring the situation."
THE SHIP HIT IN THE BLACK SEA
Minister Uraloğlu responded to a question regarding whether there is any issue related to navigation safety concerning the ship hit in the Black Sea:
"Our experts are monitoring the situation. But I can say that there was an external intervention. It is an operation that took place outside our territorial waters. There is no general problem related to navigation."
WHAT HAPPENED?
Recently, an attack was carried out on a foreign-flagged oil tanker named "Altura," operated by a Turkish company, while it was en route from Russia to Liverpool, 14 miles away from the Istanbul Strait. It was learned that the health condition of the 27 Turkish crew members on the tanker is good.