Further to the January report of the Chamber of Shipping of America please find a link to the recently issued Maritime Action plan – Maritime Action Plan (MAP) by the Executive Office of President Trump.

The Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) has provided some initial comments and a summary of the proposals which is attached at Annex A.

The MAP is a high-level comprehensive strategy to restore the United States’ status as a global maritime leader. It emphasises the vulnerability of the U.S. economic and national security caused (it says) by the current reliance on foreign-built and foreign flagged vessels. Of particular concern is the proposal to fund the strategy with a new infrastructure or security fee on all foreign-built commercial vessels calling at U.S. ports “assessed on the weight of the imported tonnage arriving on the vessel”.

Members are invited to note the MAP’s proposed measures as outlined in the CSA summary, as well as CSA’s comments.

Members are also encouraged to share any concerns and to direct any questions or comments regarding the potential impact of the MAP to Melissande Cathélaz, ICS Policy Adviser (melissande.cathelaz@ics-shipping.org).

Meanwhile, the ICS Secretariat intends to liaise with the Consultative Shipping Group (CSG) about potential next steps and will keep members informed of any signifiant developments.