The United States has warned countries to reject a landmark emissions-cutting agreement brokered at the International Maritime Organization (IMO), threatening tariffs, visa restrictions, and port levies against supporters.
The IMO — a London-based specialised agency of the United Nations — is responsible for regulating international shipping. In April, member states struck a draft accord that would penalise ships breaching global carbon emissions standards. Backers say the plan is vital to curbing the nearly 3% of global CO₂ emissions generated by shipping, which carries around 90% of world trade.
Washington withdrew from negotiations in the run-up to the agreement and, by August, had pledged to retaliate against countries backing what it derisively calls the “Net-Zero Framework”. U.S. officials argue the measures would saddle the shipping industry with unnecessary costs while offering only modest environmental benefits.
In recent days, the U.S. State Department has lobbied IMO members to oppose the deal.
“We are actively exploring and preparing to act on remedies including tariffs, visa restrictions, and/or port levies should this effort succeed in the October IMO extraordinary session vote,” a U.S. official said, adding that Washington is encouraging allies to follow suit but declined to elaborate on “private diplomatic discussions with other countries”.
The Netherlands confirmed it had been directly warned by U.S. representatives that supporting the framework could trigger economic retaliation. It is unclear how many other IMO members have received similar threats.
The draft agreement has so far secured the backing of 63 states, with 16 opposed and 24 abstaining. A majority will be required for adoption at next month’s extraordinary session.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.
