Attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf and the Red Sea have shown how much of India’s trade rides on vessels it neither owns nor controls. India is now looking to sign separate agreements with Liberia and Panama this year to build a bigger role in global shipping, government and other sources said.
Attacks and security incidents on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz are still happening, with maritime monitors reporting a surge in warnings. Ninety-five percent of India’s trade by volume and 75 percent by value moves by sea. The bulk of it is carried on foreign vessels.
The agreements will cover shipbuilding, ship leasing and financing, foreign-flagged vessels, seafarers and training. The aim is to move India beyond running shipyards to financing, registering and crewing more of the world’s ships, a senior government official told Money control.
“We are expecting the MoU with both Liberia and Panama to be concluded this year,” the government official said. India and Liberia are already working on their pact, while a proposal for Panama is also on the table.
Union ports, shipping and waterways minister Sarbananda Sonowal requested Panama’s foreign minister in July to speed up discussions on a bilateral agreement on maritime transport and port development.
The two countries run some of the world’s largest ship registries. On September 25, India and Liberia launched a group at the United Nations to protect commercial vessels and seafarers, with representatives of 25 countries at the first meeting.
