CAIRO, Feb. 15 – Osama Rabie, chairman of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), met with the CEO of global shipping company MSC Group on Wednesday in an attempt to reassure companies about using the canal amid tensions in the Red Sea.
Rabie and Soren Toft, CEO of MSC Group, held an online meeting to discuss the volatile situation in the region, according to an SCA statement.
“We are keen on continuous coordination with our clients to reach joint work mechanisms aimed at reducing the effects of the current crisis on global supply chains,” Rabie said, acknowledging the security concerns influencing MSC’s navigation policies.
Toft pledged to resume using the Suez Canal “as soon as the security situation stabilizes in the Red Sea and Bab Al-Mandab regions,” voicing their intention to invest more in Egyptian logistics projects. However, he reiterated concerns about crew and vessel safety after attacks on some MSC ships passing through the Bab Al-Mandab strait.
In January, Rabie reported a 30 percent drop in ship traffic compared to the same period last year, attributing it to recent Red Sea tensions.
Since the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in October last year, the Houthi group in Yemen have repeatedly attacked ships that have links to Israel in the Red Sea.
The United States and Britain launched several airstrikes on Houthi military sites in the Yemeni capital Sanaa and other provinces under the group’s control in January in response to the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea.
The Suez Canal, carrying 12 percent of global trade, is a crucial source of foreign currency for Egypt.
