COSCO has sent the 18,982 teu CSCL ARCTIC OCEAN and CSCL INDIAN OCEAN through the Strait of Hormuz on 30 March 2026, becoming the first containerships not linked to Iran to leave the Persian Gulf since the 2,553 teu SSF LEO made it out on 3 March 2026. It follows an aborted attempt on 27 March 2026 when both vessels turned back just south of Qeshm and returned to shelter off Dubai.
Both ships are operated by COSCO on the OCEAN Alliance Far East-Middle East 5 (MEA5 aka MEX/ME5/CMEX) service with