A toll for using Hormuz would be a ‘dangerous precedent’, says UN’s shipping agency

• Iran suggested tolls for the Strait of Hormuz after a ceasefire with the US, causing international concern.
• The IMO stated, "There is no international agreement where tolls can be introduced," setting a "dangerous precedent".
• UNCLOS grants ships transit passage through international straits, and states shouldn't impede this right, according to the IMO.

LONDON - Imposing a toll on ships sailing through the critical Strait of Hormuz would “set a dangerous precedent” and countries should not impede freedom of navigation, the UN’s shipping agency said on April 9.

Iranian officials have raised the idea of charging a toll for using the Strait, after a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Tehran was agreed this week.

“There is no international agreement where tolls can be introduced for transiting international straits. Any such toll will set a dangerous precedent,” a spokesperson with the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO) said.

IMO countries adopted the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas, or UNCLOS, which outlines the rules that govern straits used for international navigation.

“According to UNCLOS, ships enjoy the right of transit passage through international straits. States bordering straits shall not hamper that right or suspend the transit passage,” the IMO spokesperson said. REUTERS