Overview
- The HMM-operated very large crude carrier Universal Winner reached waters off Ulsan on Wednesday carrying 2 million barrels of Kuwaiti crude and all 21 crew members are reported in good health.
- A South Korean‑operated liquefied natural gas carrier with eight Korean crew completed transit out of the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday in a move led by its foreign charterer.
- Those two departures cut the number of South Korean‑operated ships stranded in the strait to 24 and lowered the number of South Korean sailors in the area to 139.
- The Universal Winner left after a May 20 agreement between Seoul and Tehran, while the LNG carrier’s passage was arranged through consultations between the ship operator and its charterer.
- Seoul says it will keep providing monitoring and diplomatic support for remaining vessels, noting the exits ease near-term supply pressures but that Iranian threats and reported strikes keep shipping and insurance risks high.