The EU and 33 countries have signed a global pledge opposing fees, tolls and other discriminatory restrictions on ships passing through straits used for international navigation.
The pledge says key waterways used by international shipping are “global lifelines” and argues their safety depends on respect for international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the European External Action Service (EEAS) informed on Tuesday.
UNCLOS is a UN treaty that sets out rules for how countries can use the world’s oceans.
The text warns that disruptions to maritime routes — including in “strategically vital waterways” — have had global effects on trade, energy flows, supply chains and food security.
The pledge says introducing restrictions, conditions or “other obstacles” to lawful passage through straits used for international navigation would set a “dangerous precedent”, and that no state should impose discriminatory limits on ships in a way that is inconsistent with UNCLOS.
Backed by EU states and 33 other countries
EU High Representative on Foreign Policy Kaja Kallas announced the pledge on 12 October 2026, the EEAS said.
It is supported by all EU member states and 33 countries worldwide: Australia, Bahrain, Benin, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cook Islands, Fiji, Gabon, Honduras, Iceland, Japan, Jordan, Kiribati, Lesotho, Liberia, Mauritania, Montenegro, New Zealand, North Macedonia, Norway, Oman, Palau, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, São Tomé and Príncipe, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Turkmenistan, the United Kingdom and Yemen.
Signatories said they would work through international and regional bodies involved in maritime governance and security, including the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), and added that they supported “defensive and non-escalatory” multilateral initiatives to preserve freedom of navigation.
They also rejected “coercive or unilateral action” that would undermine the international order set out in UNCLOS, and opposed measures such as unlawful fees, tolls, prior authorisation requirements or other conditions that would hamper lawful navigation through international straits.
