Singapore warns closure of international straits threatens global trade and law of the sea

Vivian Balak Krishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore, told the General Assembly that recent disruptions in the Persian Gulf have placed customary international law on transit passage under severe strain and called for collective rejection of any attempt to treat passage as subject to fees or tolls.

"Transit passage through straits used for international navigation is a right for all of us. It's not a privilege subject to fees and tolls," Krishnan said, arguing that the closure of key straits threatens the legal architecture for freedom of navigation and overflight.

He pointed to economic consequences, saying the strait in question carries about one-fifth of the world's oil supplies and other critical seaborne goods; its disruption has driven higher energy prices, broken supply chains and stranded seafarers. Krishnan noted Singapore's own geography—its strait is less than two nautical miles at its narrowest—and stressed the long-standing cooperative mechanisms among littoral states to keep sea lanes open and secure.

The minister framed defending UNCLOS and customary navigational rights as an urgent, collective interest that requires states to resist unilateral coercion that would undermine global trade and security.