The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has warned that plans attributed to Iran to impose a toll on ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz would undermine the established principles of international maritime law and set a dangerous precedent for global shipping.
The Secretary-General of the IMO, Arsenio Domínguez, has stated in a statement that there is no international agreement allowing the introduction of tolls for transit through international straits. Domínguez emphasized that any fee of this type would constitute a dangerous precedent for global navigation.
The warning comes in a context where various news sources, although without official confirmation, have indicated that since February 28, transits through the strait carried out in coordination with Iranian authorities would have entailed toll payments of up to two million dollars per vessel. Iran is also reportedly processing a legislative project to formalize the collection of transit fees through the strait.
The IMO has reminded that, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), ships enjoy the right of passage in transit through international straits and that coastal states cannot obstruct or suspend that right. However, Iran has never ratified UNCLOS.
