US threatens sanctions over UN shipping emissions plan
The United States has warned it may impose punitive measures, including visa restrictions and economic sanctions, on countries that vote to adopt a United Nations agency’s proposed plan to curb greenhouse gas emissions from maritime transport.
UN member nations are scheduled to vote next week on the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) Net-Zero Framework proposal, aimed at reducing global carbon dioxide emissions from the international shipping sector.
This sector handles around 80 per cent of global trade and accounts for nearly 3 per cent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions.
Large container carriers, under pressure from investors to address climate change, generally support the idea of a global regulatory framework to accelerate decarbonisation.
However, some of the world’s largest oil tanker companies have expressed “grave concerns” about the proposal.
“The Administration unequivocally rejects this proposal before the IMO and will not tolerate any action that increases costs for our citizens, energy providers, shipping companies and their customers, or tourists,” said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a joint statement.
They argued that the proposal “poses significant risks to the global economy and subjects not just Americans, but all IMO member states to an unsanctioned global tax regime that levies punitive and regressive financial penalties.”
Supporters of the IMO proposal contend that without a unified global framework, the maritime industry would face a fragmented set of regulations and rising costs, without effectively reducing climate-warming emissions.
US officials said they are considering retaliatory measures against UN member countries that support the plan.
These could include blocking vessels flagged in those nations from entering US ports, imposing visa fees and restrictions, and sanctioning officials “sponsoring activist-driven climate policies.”
