Suez Crisis, Blockade, and The Emergence of Giant Ships

Suez Canal

The concept of linking the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea dates back thousands of years. For a long time, humans have attempted to link canals with the branches of the great Nile to facilitate trade and travel.

According to official Egyptian sources, Senausert III, Pharaoh of Egypt (1847 BC), was the first person to dig a canal, which was abandoned to silting later. Since then, many attempts had been made to link the two seas. From the Pharaohs to Napoleon – all have attempted to dig a man-made canal. The Islamic caliphate had rebuilt the canal, linking the Nile to the Red Sea to use it for trade and pilgrimage to Mecca before the Abbasids closed it. Napoleon was told off by a miscalculation from the engineers who thought the Red Sea was some thirty feet higher than the Mediterranean Sea.

Modern-Day Suez:

The idea of the modern-day Suez Canal came into the discussion when the British and the French began to expand their colonies into Asia and Africa. Since the alternate route, which is thousands of miles long, is around Africa, the European powers began to explore options to find a shortcut trip. In the mid-nineteenth century, the French took interest in the canal project. 

Finally, in 1869, the Suez Canal was opened for navigation. The canal came into existence under the supervision of a French diplomat, Ferdinand De Lesseps. It required some 2500 million cubic feet of earth to be removed to dig the canal.

Trade Importance:

Since then, the canal became one of the most important and busiest sea routes for global trade. 12% of global trade and 30% of cargo ships, which account for $10 billion every day, pass through this channel. The tolls collected from Suez Canal contribute a big chunk to Egypt’s economy. When Ever Given got wedged and blocked the canal for a week, Egypt took a hit of around $14 million a day. Last year, Suez Canal’s contribution accounted for 2% of Egypt’s total GDP. Countless businesses have been affected as a result of the blockage.

However, the canal was blocked in the past for other reasons too. The historical canal has been a part of conflicts. In modern times, the vital route was blocked twice – in 1956 and in 1967. The conflict of 1956 is famously known as the Suez Canal Crisis.

Suez Canal Crisis:

The monetary and strategic interests caused the conflict. The canal was built when Egypt was under the colonial rule of England. France and England jointly controlled the critical waterway. Anglo-Egypt treaty of 1936 allowed the British army to remain on the canal zone even after Egypt's independence, but the scenario changed when Gamal Abdel Nasser became the President of Egypt after a military coup that overthrew the monarchy. The nationalist leader was keen on taking control of the waterway and ending the military presence of Britain.

In 1956, Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal. Backed by the Soviet Union, Nasser ordered the Egyptian army to siege the control of the canal from the British, triggering the conflict. It led to a tripartite invasion of Israel, Britain, and France.

Israel was the first to launch an attack. Israel had a direct interest in controlling the Suez as Egypt had previously closed the Strait of Tiran for the country. Britain and France joined the invasion and took control of the area around the canal. The situation worsened when the Soviets joined the conflict, and Nikita Khrushchev threatened to nuke strategically important locations and help liberation movements around the world. This chain of events escalated global tension.

This forced the United States to join the conflict. The US threatened the three countries of economic sanction and also the Soviets. Conceding to US pressure, Britain, France, and Israel withdrew from Egypt, bringing an end to the Suez Canal Crisis. UN sent a peacekeeping force to restore order in the conflict zone.

During the conflict, the Suez Canal was closed for a year. The period is known as Suez Canal Crisis. 

The Eight-year Blockade:

Egypt and Israel – the countries clashed again in 1967, famously known as the Six-day war. The war resulted in the toughest trade blockade in the modern-day. Damaged during the war, the debris blocked the waterways. Egypt put a blockade on the canal and it lasted for eight long years. Fifteen ships became the worst victims of the brawl. They entered the canal before the conflict started. The blockade kept them there for the entire time. They are famously known as The Yellow Fleet.

In 1973, the two countries - Egypt and Israel -  clashed once again. After serious damage to both sides, they agreed to a ceasefire. Egypt agreed to end the trade block and re-open the waterway. It took two years, to remove the debris and clear the route. Finally, in 1975 the vital route was open for navigation again.

 

The emergence of Giant Ship:

 

Last week, 1300-feet long and 200k-ton heavy giant Taiwanese vessel, Ever Given, got wedged in the canal. This raised questions about the humongous size of modern ships. The phenomena can be explained with the economies of scale. The last blockade of the Suez played a part in it. When the canal was closed for eight years, the cargo ships were forced to navigate around Africa.

The African route about 8000 miles and 8 days longer in the modern age. To decrease the cost of shipping, the companies began to make larger ships that can carry more containers. With time the size of the ships kept growing.

The size of global trade has also grown by a large number. The demand for reduced shipping costs to keep the prices of the goods low has also increased. This added to the cause of making larger ships. Large ships can carry more containers. It is as simple as that. For example - Ever Given was carrying 18,300 containers.