Page 23: of Marine News Magazine (August 2024)

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Column

U.S. Maritime ing association for Europe’s shipbuild- continuous assault on international sary U.S.-? agged capability and U.S. ers has grimly declared that “without shipping through the Red Sea has merchant mariners ready to move a fundamental change in shipbuilding caused commercial vessels to divert sensitive defense materials during a policies, Europe will lose the capabil- from that major channel and reroute national emergency.” ity to build seagoing merchant ships around South Africa. They have ? red The Jones Act is a vital asset for pro- on any signi? cant scale over the com- upon American mariners aboard tecting our people and infrastructure ing 10 years,” mainly due to China. U.S.-? agged ships carrying vital gov- from bad actors by limiting foreign

Meanwhile, the CCP has expanded its ernment cargoes while Chinese ships vessels’ ability to roam our inland wa- international presence into 100 ports have passed through unencumbered. terways and allowing the Coast Guard globally and populated U.S. ports On top of enabling American con- to safeguard our nation’s waterways with cranes made in China, raising trol over our supply chain, the Jones using taxpayers’ critical dollars more security concerns. Act is also critical to maintaining our ef? ciently. Without the law, the Coast

The Jones Act is fundamental to military readiness. Our armed forces Guard’s already dif? cult homeland maintaining a ? eet of American-built, count on barges to transport military security mission would be even more -crewed and -owned vessels under- equipment between U.S. bases on our complex at a dangerous time.

girding our nation’s economy and domestic waterways and rely on tug- The United States must be clear- serving as a bulwark against China’s boats to help Navy ships safely enter eyed and af? rm its commitment to expansionism. It supports 650,000 and exit U.S. ports. The Jones Act American maritime and the security

American jobs, helps secure our do- ensures that American vessels perform it provides. It’s time for our mari- mestic transportation from supply these critical tasks and also that the time industrial base to receive the chain disruptions and buffers against United States maintains a robust pool national attention it deserves to en- anti-competitive maneuvers from of trained mariners for the military’s sure the strong defense and economic

China. U.S. shipyards are booked and critical sealift needs. resilience this country demands. The busy building oceangoing and “brown Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost, Jones Act and the 650,000 men and water” vessels to meet our economic the commander of U.S. Transporta- women of American maritime are and national security demands. tion Command, underscored this to just the start.

Without a trusted domestic mari- Congress, remarking that the Jones

NOTE: The article is reprinted with per- time industry connecting Hawaii to Act and associated laws “work to mission from Inside Sources.

California, Alaska to Washington state, ensure TRANSCOM has the neces-

Florida to Puerto Rico, and the lower 48 states to one another, we would be dangerously vulnerable. The Jones Act ensures these vital domestic trade lanes are independent of foreign interests and underpins U.S. shipbuilding.

Meanwhile, the con? icts in Ukraine and the Red Sea are stark reminders of how tenuous the free movement of cargo can be. Russia’s invasion of

Ukraine and its potential implica- tions for the global supply and trans- port of grain have kept the world on edge since 2022. Today, the Houthis’ www.marinelink.com MN 23|