LONDON, July 10 (Xinhua) -- The U.S.-led Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) said on Friday that the southern transit route through the Strait of Hormuz, where the U.S. military provides assistance, remains open, despite shipping data showing that only a handful of vessels have recently used the corridor.
The advisory, released by the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, said the maritime security threat level in the Strait of Hormuz remains "severe."
"Notwithstanding recent unprovoked attacks on merchant vessels, mariners are reminded that the southern route of the Strait of Hormuz has been expanded and remains available for all traffic," the advisory said.
However, data compiled by maritime intelligence firms, including Windward, showed that vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has contracted sharply in recent days amid military exchanges between the United States and Iran.
Data showed that the southern corridor has been effectively abandoned by most commercial operators, with only a very small number of vessels continuing to use the route. Some vessels were reported to have reversed course after entering the southern corridor.
Following a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding reached last month, two main transit corridors have been used in the Strait of Hormuz: a northern route under Iranian control and a southern route closer to Oman, where the U.S. military provides transit assistance.
The JMIC also stressed that "there is no controlling authority regulating passage or fee required for any route."
Analysts said the U.S. statement appeared intended to reject the authority claimed by Iran's Persian Gulf Strait Authority over transit through the strait. ■