The Strait of Hormuz is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategically important choke points. On the north coast lies Iran, and on the south coast lies the Musandam peninsula, shared by the United Arab Emirates and the Musandam Governorate, an exclave of Oman. The strait is about 90 nautical miles (167 km) long, with a width varying from about 52 nmi (96 km) to 21 nmi (39 km).
The Typhoon class, Soviet designation Project 941 Akula, was a class of nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines designed and built by the Soviet Union for the Soviet Navy. With a submerged displacement of 48000 tonnes, the Typhoons were the largest submarines ever built, able to accommodate comfortable living facilities for the crew of 160 when submerged for several months. The source of the NATO reporting name remains unclear, although it is often claimed to be related to the use of the word "typhoon" ("тайфун") by General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev of the Communist Party in a 1974 speech while describing a new type of nuclear ballistic missile submarine, as a reaction to the United States Navy's new Ohio-class submarine.
Saab Kockums AB is a shipyard headquartered in Malmö, Sweden, owned by the Swedish defence company Saab AB. Saab Kockums AB is further operational in Muskö, Docksta, and Karlskrona. While having a history of civil vessel construction, Kockums' most renowned activity is the fabrication of military corvettes and submarines.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Navy or Iranian Navy, officially abbreviated NEDAJA, is the naval warfare service branch of Iran's regular military, the Islamic Republic of Iran Army (Artesh). It is one of Iran's two maritime military branches, alongside the Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Hammac was a steam tank ship built in 1920–1921 by Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation of Alameda for the United States Shipping Board as part of the wartime shipbuilding program of the Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) to restore the nation's Merchant Marine. Early in 1923 the vessel together with two other tankers was sold to General Petroleum Corporation and renamed Emidio. The tanker spent the vast majority of her career carrying oil along the West Coast of the United States as well as between West and East coast. In December 1941 she was shelled and damaged by the Japanese submarine I-17 and eventually wrecked with a loss of five crewmen.
Piracy off the coast of Somalia occurs in the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel, and Somali Sea, in Somali territorial waters and other surrounding places and has a long troubled history with different perspectives from different communities. It was initially a threat to international fishing vessels during the early 2000s, only to rapidly escalate and expand to international shipping during the War in Somalia (2006–2009).
Russia–Sweden relations date back to the 10th century; when Vikings called Varangians participated in the founding new states that later evolved into Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.
The submarine hunts or submarine incidents were a series of several incidents involving foreign submarines that occurred in Swedish territorial waters during the Cold War, attributed in Swedish media to the Soviet Union.
Operation Atalanta, formally European Union Naval ForceSomalia, is an ongoing counter-piracy military operation at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean, that is the first naval operation conducted by the European Union (EU), in support of United Nations resolutions 1814, 1816, 1838, and 1846 adopted in 2008 by the United Nations Security Council. Since 29 March 2019, the operational headquarters is located at Naval Station Rota in Spain, having moved from London as a result of the British withdrawal from the EU.
Montebello was a steam oil tanker built in 1920–1921 by the Southwestern Shipbuilding Co. of San Pedro for Union Oil Company. It was designed to carry oil and petroleum products along the West Coast of the United States and Canada, as well as between the United States and Chile. In December 1941 the tanker was sunk on one of her regular trips by the Japanese submarine I-21.
The MV York is a tanker for transport of liquefied gas that after its 2010 capture by Somali pirates had become a mothership for pirate operations. The vessel was released on March 10, 2011, after an unknown amount of ransom had been paid.
URF is the Royal Swedish Navy’s Submarine Rescue Vessel.
On 12 May 2019, four commercial ships were damaged off Fujairah's coast in the Gulf of Oman. The ships included two Saudi Arabian registered oil tankers, a Norwegian registered oil tanker, and an Emirati registered bunkering ship. The ships were anchored on the United Arab Emirates territorial waters for bunkering in Port of Fujairah. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates reported that the ships had been subject to a "sabotage attack". The United Arab Emirates launched a joint investigation probe with United States and France. The initial investigation assessment determined that 5-to-10-foot holes near or below all the ships' waterlines were probably caused by explosive charges.
On 13 June 2019, two oil tankers were attacked near the Strait of Hormuz while they transited the Gulf of Oman. The Kokuka Courageous, flagged in Panama and operated by a company based in Japan, and Front Altair, flagged in Marshall Islands and operated by a company based in Norway, were attacked, allegedly with limpet mines or flying objects, sustaining fire damage. American and Iranian military personnel responded and rescued crew members. The attacks took place a month after the similar May 2019 Gulf of Oman incident and on the same day, Iranian Supreme Leader Iran Ali Khamenei met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe in Iran. Abe was acting as an intermediary between US President Donald Trump and Khamenei.
Swiftstar was a steam tanker built in 1920-1921 by Northwest Bridge & Iron Company of Portland for the Swiftsure Oil Transport Co., a subsidiary of the France & Canada Steamship Co., with intention of transporting oil from foreign ports to refineries along the Gulf and East Coasts of the United States. The ship had short but troubled history. In July 1923 after departing Colón the tanker went missing. Large oil slick, burnt remnants and several lifeboats bearing the ships's name were later found indicating the ship exploded. All 32 people on board were presumed lost.
The 1982 Hårsfjärden incident was a peacetime naval engagement in which the Swedish Navy laid a trap for, pursued, and attempted to sink a foreign submarine that had violated Swedish territorial waters. The incident came in the wake of increased Soviet submarine activity in the Baltic Sea, with Sweden alleging that the Soviet Union had violated Sweden's territorial waters several times from 1974 – 1981. The incident, which led to a parliamentary investigation in Sweden, resulted in increased tensions between Sweden and the Soviet Union, and the claimed intrusion of a Soviet submarine remains a contested topic.
The European Union Naval Force Mediterranean Operation Irini was launched on 31 March 2020 with the primary mission to enforce the United Nations arms embargo to Libya due to the Second Libyan Civil War. Operation Irini is a European Union military operation under the umbrella of the Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP). The operation is expected to use aerial, maritime and satellite assets.
As part of the sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation as a result of the Russo-Ukrainian War, on September 2, 2022, finance ministers of the G7 group of nations agreed to cap the price of Russian oil and petroleum products in an effort intended to reduce Russia's ability to finance its war on Ukraine while at the same time hoping to curb further increases to the 2021–2022 inflation surge.
Tonan Maru No. 3, from 1951 simply the Tonan Maru, was a Japanese whale oil factory ship. Built at Osaka in 1938 she was the largest merchant ship built in Japan to that point. She carried out whaling in the South Atlantic and in 1941 was blacklisted by the British government, believed to be because she was suspected of refuelling German vessels in the Pacific during the Second World War. Following the Japanese entry into the war Tonan Maru No. 3 was operated as an oil tanker in support of military operations. She survived 11 torpedo hits from USS Tinosa in 1943 as most failed to detonate. Tonan Maru No. 3 was sunk in Chuuk Lagoon by carrier-based aircraft in the 17 February 1944 Operation Hailstone. She was salvaged by Japan after the war, rebuilt and returned to service as the Tonan Maru in 1951. She returned to whaling and was scrapped in 1971.
Novorossiysk Shipping Company (Novoship) was a Russian shipping company and one of the largest in the country. The full name was Public Joint-Stock Company "Novorossiysk Shipping Company". The headquarters were located in Novorossiysk.
Liberia