At the UN Security Council Kaja Kallas warned that blockades and sabotage threaten global trade and energy. Urgent multilateral action is needed to safeguard maritime routes.
During the annual meeting of the United Nations Security Council, where issues of cooperation between the UN and the EU in the field of maritime security were discussed, Kaja Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, emphasized the need to create a global coalition to safeguard sea lanes. She drew attention to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and the threats to communications and energy in the Baltic and North Seas, underscoring the importance of joint action in this area.
Our collective security, protection and prosperity are inextricably linked to what happens at sea. Maritime security lies at the heart of global communications, energy supply and economic development
– Kaja Kallas
She stressed that this area is becoming increasingly unstable and requires concerted international efforts.
Whether it is the Baltic, the North or the Red Sea, the many straits, or the Indo-Pacific region, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is being deliberately undermined
– Kaja Kallas
According to her, international cooperation in maritime security over the past years has not developed as quickly as the threats in this field have grown.
We must be faster
– Kaja Kallas
What is happening today in the Strait of Hormuz is the clearest call to create a strong international coalition on maritime security
– Kaja Kallas
Kallas also stressed that one of the main tasks is to ensure the safe passage of all cargo through the Strait of Hormuz. She reiterated the EU’s position on rejecting any agreements that restrict free and safe passage through the straits in accordance with international law.
In the context of growing threats, other challenges were noted as well: underwater cables and pipelines are becoming targets of sabotage, therefore strengthening shipping security and infrastructure comes to the fore.
For this reason we must intensify work on a new multilateral agreement to establish legal certainty and develop tools to counter such threats. When we learn what works, we should replicate such successful practices elsewhere
– Kaja Kallas
In summary, the EU’s stance emphasizes the need for rapid and consistent coordination among the international community to protect sea routes, support maritime safety, and safeguard critically important infrastructure.
Key Points on the International Maritime Security Coalition
Overall, Kallas’s speech underscores the importance of rapid coordination by the global community and the formation of multilateral mechanisms to counter threats in the world’s oceans. She calls for moving forward and implementing practical solutions that will ensure a free and safe maritime route in accordance with international law and shipping standards.