Sen. Richard Blumenthal speaks about potentially defunding the Department of Homeland Security at a media briefing Feb. 2 at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford, CT. Credit: Donald Eng / CTNewsJunkie
Connecticut Sen. Richard Blumenthal is calling for better protection for U.S.-flagged and U.S.-crewed commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf after he said he received a letter from a Connecticut resident who is stranded on a cargo vessel in the region.
Blumenthal, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, wrote to Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the U.S. Central Command, raising concerns about crew safety about such vessels, which he said are reportedly rationing water and provisions while operating under sustained psychological and operational stress due to the United States and Israel’s war against Iran.
“The United States has long recognized the strategic importance of its civilian mariners and maritime workforce — not only as commercial actors, but as a critical component of national security and sealift capacity,” Blumenthal wrote. “In moments such as this, that commitment must extend beyond rhetoric to tangible protection and support.”
Blumenthal described the region as highly contested and marked by drone activity, missile threats and maritime insecurity.
“These vessels appear to have received no warning or direction to reposition prior to the onset of hostilities and now face significant challenges in accessing safe resupply, maintaining reliable communications, and identifying a pathway to safe transit,” he wrote. “Crews aboard these vessels are reportedly rationing water and provisions, while operating under sustained psychological and operational stress. The safety and welfare of American mariners in this environment demands immediate attention.”
Blumenthal requested that Cooper prioritize resupply and port access for U.S.-flagged and U.S.-crewed vessels, provide Congress with the port call plan and other security measures to enable resupply of vessels, establish a reliable communications framework for U.S.-flagged vessels in the region to communicate with U.S. authorities, and explain what, if anything, was done to notify or reposition U.S.-flagged vessels prior to the start of the war.
In closing, Blumenthal called civilian mariners and maritime workers “a critical component of national security and sealift capacity” and said support for them must go beyond rhetoric to tangible protection.