What Happened
The secretary general of the International Maritime Organization, Panama’s Arsenio Domínguez, said there is no legal basis under the law of the sea for charging ships tolls to pass through the Strait of Hormuz or for unilaterally changing shipping routes there.
Speaking in London, Domínguez said he has no record that Iran has collected such tolls from vessels crossing the strait since a ceasefire began on Tuesday night in Washington. He also said the number of ships moving through the waterway remains far below normal, with fewer than 10 a day passing compared with about 130 daily before the conflict between the United States and Israel against Iran.
Route Changes Raise Concerns
Domínguez said Iran has altered the route ships must take through Hormuz, pushing traffic closer to Iranian waters between Qeshm and Larak islands. He said that change was imposed without consultation with Oman or with the International Maritime Organization and does not respect the freedom of navigation.
The route had been used in the same general way since 1968, with vessels passing through a midpoint between the coasts of Oman and Iran. The shift has added to uncertainty in one of the world’s most sensitive shipping corridors.
Why Hormuz Matters
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most important maritime chokepoints in the world. Domínguez said about 20% of global oil, 13% of chemicals and fertilizers, and 9% of new automobiles pass through it.
He also said around 1,300 ships are currently waiting on both sides of the strait to transit, and that even under the best conditions it would take weeks to clear the backlog. The disruption is already weighing heavily on the global economy.
Security, Insurance and Escort Proposals
Domínguez dismissed the idea of an international naval escort force for merchant ships as a long-term solution. He said escorts require extensive coordination and still do not guarantee that a commercial vessel will avoid attack.
He also said most insurance companies are refusing to cover ships entering Hormuz because of war risks, while those that do are charging sharply higher premiums. He noted that some insurers raised prices to several times their normal level, but very few are now offering coverage at all.
The available insurance, he said, typically covers only the vessel and its cargo, not the lives of crew members who could be endangered in an attack.
A Panamanian at the Center of the Debate
As the top official of the global maritime body, Domínguez has become a key voice in a crisis affecting international shipping routes. His comments underline the legal and commercial pressure created by the conflict, especially for vessels that rely on Hormuz to move energy, chemicals and goods between the Gulf and world markets.
The Strait of Hormuz has long been governed by a 1968 agreement signed by Iran and Oman and backed by the International Maritime Organization. That framework helped ensure predictable passage for nearly six decades, but the current war has introduced scenarios that maritime authorities say were never designed into the system.