Mitsui OSK Sohar LNG

The Mitsui OSK Sohar LNG is a Japanese-flagged Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carrier operated by Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL), one of Japan's three Major shipping conglomerates alongside Nippon Yusen (NYK) and Kawasaki Kisen (K Line). MOL is headquartered in Tokyo and operates a fleet of more than 800 vessels across bulk carriers, tankers, car carriers, and LNG ships, serving energy majors and national oil companies on long-term charter agreements across Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.

The vessel entered global attention when it paid Iran's Hormuz toll in April 2026, becoming one of the first Japanese-flagged ships to transit the strait under Iran's new levy regime. Japan lodged a formal flag-state protest after the Sohar LNG and France's CMA CGM Kribi appeared on President Trump's 12 April 2026 toll-interdiction list, which ordered the US Navy to interdict vessels that had paid Iran's transit fee — a provision absent from CENTCOM's actual operational order. The episode exposed the gap between presidential rhetoric and military authority.

The inclusion of a Japanese-operated vessel drew particular diplomatic weight given Japan's structural dependence on Middle East LNG. Japan imports approximately 35-40% of its LNG from the Gulf region, and any interdiction regime affecting Japanese carriers would trigger a direct conflict between Washington and one of its closest treaty allies. Tokyo's protest was filed through formal diplomatic channels and referenced international law on innocent passage.