Sea
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IRAQ SEA ENTRY POINTS
General
Iraq’s two main routes of access to the sea are through the Khor Abdullah Waterway, running between Al-Fao Peninsula and Kuwait’s Warba and Bubiyan Islands and leading to the port of Umm Qasr, and the Shatt Al-Arab Waterway, which provides access for relatively small vessels to Basra. The country’s main port is Umm Qasr, at the mouth of the Khor Zubayr. There are two other ports upstream of Umm Qasr. One is the Khor Zubayr LPG export facility and the other is the small shallow water port of Khor Zubayr itself. Khor Zubayr is about 10 kilometres north of Umm Qasr with the LPG facility equidistant to those two ports.
There are several small ports on the Shatt Al-Arab waterway, and several offshore crude oil loading terminals which do not come under the purview of this report.
All shipping movements in the area are coordinated by the US Navy Marine Liaison Office (MARLO), based in Bahrain. This organisation co-ordinates with Coalition Navy and Coastguard forces deployed in the region. One of their primary functions is to ensure that the channel into Umm Qasr is kept clear for shipping operations.
For detailed information on Iraqi ports see Mesteel
UM QASR PORT
The port consists of two distinct areas: the old port situated on the left bank of the river and the new port located in a dredged channel to the northwest of the river.
The Iraqi ports are under the OCPA/Ministry of Transport and Communication authority. The operations in the port of Um Qasr have been given to S.S.A. (Stevedore Services of America) by USAID.
It is understood the priority for dealing with the discharge of cargos is as follows;
(a) humanitarian aid;
(b) Coalition military supplies;
(c) Supplies and equipment required for reconstruction projects;
(d) Commercial cargos.
For detailed information on Um Qasr see here
