Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu stated that a total of 65,807 ship movements occurred in the Istanbul and Çanakkale straits between January and September, with approximately 1.9 million ships passing through the straits in the last 20 years. Minister Uraloğlu shared data on the ship movements in the Turkish straits during the first 9 months of the year in a written statement. Pointing out the intense period of commercial and transportation ship crossings in the Turkish straits, Uraloğlu commented: “A total of 65,807 ship movements took place in the Istanbul and Çanakkale straits between January and September 2024. The number of ships passing through our straits in the last 20 years reached 1.9 million. These ship crossings play a critical role in our country’s economy in international maritime transport. By continuing to move our country to the forefront in the international maritime arena with the projects we have implemented.” Uraloğlu also mentioned, “The number of ships passing through the Çanakkale Strait increased by 3.1%.” In September, 3,760 ships passed through the Çanakkale Strait, with 860 of them being tankers carrying dangerous loads, including oil. These ships carried a total of 47,343,491 tons of cargo, of which 18,282,121 tons were considered “dangerous.” Uraloğlu stated: “During the January-September period, the number of ships passing through the Çanakkale Strait increased by 3.1% compared to the same period last year, reaching 34,646. During these ship crossings, a total of 453,746,887 tons of cargo was transported, including 157,005,205 tons of dangerous cargo by 7,791 dangerous cargo tankers.” Uraloğlu further reported on the ship movements in the Istanbul Strait, noting that 31,161 ships passed through the strait in September, with 785 of them being tankers carrying dangerous loads. These ships transported a total of 35,473,199 tons of cargo, of which 15,307,099 tons were considered “dangerous.” Uraloğlu disclosed the following information on the number of ships and cargo volume that passed through the Istanbul Strait in 9 months: “During the January-September period, the number of ships passing through the Istanbul Strait increased by 7.1% compared to the same period last year, reaching 31,161, with 7,302 tankers carrying dangerous loads. A total of 342,936,330 tons of cargo was transported, including 137,623,581 tons of dangerous cargo.”