EuroWire, BRUSSELS: The European Commission said on April 9 that free navigation through the Strait of Hormuz must be maintained without tolls or transit fees, setting out the bloc’s clearest position yet on a proposal to charge vessels using one of the world’s most important energy shipping lanes. Speaking at the Commission’s midday briefing, spokesperson Anouar El Anouni said international law and the law of the sea left no ambiguity over the principle of unrestricted passage.
The Commission said the legal position was straightforward even as shipping companies faced commercial pressure from ongoing disruption in the Gulf. Chief spokesperson Paula Pinho told reporters that, under international law, such fees should not exist, while any decision by individual shipowners or companies to pay would be taken by those operators themselves. The remarks underscored a distinction between the European Union’s legal stance and the immediate operational choices confronting carriers with cargoes still delayed in the region.
The statement came as traffic through Hormuz remained far below normal levels despite a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran. The strait, which links the Gulf to the Arabian Sea, normally handles about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. Ship-tracking data on April 9 showed only seven vessels had passed through in the previous 24 hours, compared with about 140 in ordinary conditions, leaving hundreds of tankers and other ships still stranded inside the Gulf.
Legal framework sharpens dispute
International maritime rules have become central to the dispute. The U.N.’s shipping agency said there is no international agreement that allows tolls to be imposed on ships transiting international straits and warned that such a move would create a dangerous precedent. The governing framework under the law of the sea provides for transit passage through straits used for international navigation and says states bordering those waterways must not hamper or suspend that right, a standard Brussels said applies in Hormuz.
The Commission’s comments also aligned Brussels with a broader European response. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said charging ships to cross Hormuz would be unacceptable and would threaten freedom of navigation. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said restoring navigation through the strait was of vital interest to both Italy and the European Union. Separately, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has scheduled an April 13 College discussion on the wider impact of the Middle East crisis on Europe, including energy and transport.
Shipping delays keep pressure on trade
Brussels did not issue operational advice to vessels beyond restating the legal position, and it stopped short of telling companies whether to remain in the Gulf or attempt passage under the new conditions. That left shipowners to weigh legal principle against cargo schedules, insurance costs and supply commitments. Some vessels have used revised routes around Larak Island, while others have waited for clearer conditions. The result has been a partial resumption of movement, but not a return to normal commercial flows through the chokepoint.
For the European Commission, the issue goes beyond the current stand-off and reaches a wider question of whether a strategic international waterway can be turned into a pay-to-pass corridor after a conflict. With energy markets still absorbing the loss of normal Gulf flows and maritime traffic yet to recover, Brussels has framed the matter as one of treaty-based navigation rights rather than political bargaining, insisting that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to international shipping without tolls, fees or other barriers to passage.