UNCLOS and the Right of Transit Passage Through International Straits
The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), signed in 1982 and entering into force in 1994, is the foundational international legal framework governing maritime navigation. India ratified UNCLOS in 1995. The treaty codifies a hierarchy of navigational rights depending on maritime zone and waterway type.
- Article 17 (Innocent Passage): Ships of all states enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea (up to 12 nautical miles from baseline), but coastal states may temporarily suspend this for security reasons.
- Article 38 (Transit Passage): Ships and aircraft of all states enjoy the right of continuous and expeditious transit through straits used for international navigation. This right cannot be suspended by any coastal state for any reason.
- The Strait of Hormuz qualifies as a strait used for international navigation under Part III of UNCLOS, entitling all vessels to transit passage rights — rights that Iran's IRGC blockade directly violates.
- Iran, while a signatory to UNCLOS, has historically contested full transit passage rights in the strait, claiming sovereign authority to regulate traffic through portions of Iranian territorial waters.
● Tracked since March 27, 2026 · last seen August 05, 2026 · updates as the daily brief publishes
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