The Council of the European Union announced that EU foreign ministers voted on May 22 to widen the bloc's sanctions framework on Iran to include threats to freedom of navigation in the Middle East.
The updated framework will allow the EU to impose restrictive measures against individuals and entities linked to the regime in Tehran and its conduct in the Strait of Hormuz, formalizing a political agreement reached at the Foreign Affairs Council on April 21.
"Iran's actions against vessels transiting through the Strait of Hormuz are contrary to international law," the Council said, citing violations of established rights of transit and innocent passage through international straits.
Due to this amended legal framework, the EU will now be able to introduce further restrictive measures in response to Iran’s actions undermining the freedom of navigation through the vital throughfare, which has been all but cut off amid the U.S.–Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic, according to the Council.
Restrictive measures applicable due to the new sanctions include travel curtailments that prohibit listed individuals and entities from entering or transiting through EU territories, as well as asset freezes.
Additionally, the framework forbids EU citizens and companies from making funds, financial assets, or economic resources available to listed individuals and entities.
The sanctions regime was originally created by the EU in 2023 to address Iranian military support for Russia in its war against Ukraine, and to take action to curb the operations of armed groups across the Middle East and the Red Sea.
Hormuz Choked Off
Iran has largely restricted commercial transit through the strategic waterway to vessels linked to its own trade network since the U.S.–Israeli military campaign began in February.The United States responded last month by launching a blockade to prevent the flow of commerce into and out of Iranian ports.
In May, Iran announced the creation of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, a new body tasked with overseeing maritime transit through the waterway and coordinating shipping permissions within Iranian-designated control zones.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy reported on May 22 that 35 ships—including oil tankers and container vessels—had crossed the Strait of Hormuz in the preceding 24 hours under what it described as IRGC coordination, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
A day earlier, the IRGC put the figure at 31 vessels.
On the American side, U.S. Central Command said on May 21 that American forces have redirected 94 commercial vessels and disabled four ships while enforcing a naval blockade targeting Iranian ports.
The maritime standoff continues as Washington and Tehran exchange warnings over Iran’s nuclear program and the possibility of renewed military operations.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on May 21 that a tolling system in the Strait of Hormuz would make a deal impossible, highlighting how Iran’s demands over the strait remain a major obstacle in negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
“No one in the world is in favor of the tolling system. It can’t happen. It would be unacceptable. It would make a diplomatic deal unfeasible if they were to continue to pursue that,” Rubio said.
“So it’s a threat to the world if they were trying to do that, and it’s completely illegal.”