No country should be allowed to hold the world’s economy hostage.
Yet that is exactly what Iran is doing, by denying the right of transit passage, a key navigational right under international law, as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Today, Russia and China chose to shield their ally, Iran, rather than join international efforts to open the Strait and avert risks to the global economy.
We reject the claims made by Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi last week that the efforts by the Council to open the Strait will ‘complicate the situation’.
It is Iran’s actions that have closed the Strait.
This has already had dire consequences, and the longer this stranglehold continues, the worse the situation will get.
In the last 24 hours, we have heard only nine vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz, an international shipping route that would normally see up to 150 vessels a day.
The World Food Programme has estimated that this hostile act could push 45 million more people into extreme hunger by June.
We supported Bahrain’s initiative, and it is deeply regrettable that this resolution did not pass.
The United Kingdom is already supporting our allies in the Gulf to defend themselves, in accordance with the existing and inherent right to individual and collective self-defence.
We all want to see the de-escalation of tensions in the Strait, and we welcome current diplomatic efforts underway and stress the importance of respect for international law, including the international law of the sea as reflected in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
As my Foreign Secretary said last week, when the UK convened over 40 countries in support of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, we are determined to see every possible diplomatic, economic, and coordinated measure to get the straits reopened.
We will not cease in these efforts.
