EU Criticizes Idea of Toll Collection in the Strait of Hormuz

JAKARTA - The European Union on Thursday said freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz must be guaranteed without "any payment or toll," after Iran launched plans to impose fees on ships passing through it.

The full reopening of the vital waterway in the Gulf remains a key point of contention, as talks are set to begin this week after Iran and the United States announced a two-week ceasefire after more than a month of hostilities.

"International law guarantees freedom of navigation, which means basically no payments or tolls at all," European Commission spokesman Anouar El Anouni told a news conference in Brussels, AFP reported (9/4).

"Freedom of navigation is a public good and needs to be guaranteed," he said.

Iran agreed to reopen the waterway during a two-week ceasefire, but has also talked of setting up a toll system, which would allow them to fund its reconstruction.

Separately, President Donald Trump has suggested that the United States and Iran could manage the system in a "joint venture," although the White House said the strait should be immediately reopened without restrictions.

Iran has strictly restricted ship traffic in the waterway through which a fifth of its crude oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass each day, following the war that began with a US-Israeli attack on the Mullah's country on February 28.

Traffic through the strait remains very limited despite a ceasefire announced this week.