US has no legal right to charge ships in the Strait of Hormuz, says Marc Weller

By Al Jazeera English

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The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has reaffirmed its opposition to fees for sailing through international waterways, saying there is no legal basis for imposing mandatory tolls on ships transiting a strait. The statement follows President Donald Trump's announcement that the US would charge a 20% fee on all cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz, describing the US as the "Guardian of the Hormuz Strait." In an interview with Al Jazeera, Marc Weller, Director of the Global Governance and Security Centre and Head of the International Law Programme at Chatham House, said international law applies equally to all states and that neither the United States nor Iran has the legal right to impose mandatory transit fees. He noted that although neither country has ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the customary principles governing transit passage require the Strait of Hormuz to remain open to international shipping. Weller said only limited navigation-related charg

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