The International Maritime Organization, a United Nations agency, said on Monday it opposes the imposition of transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz after President Donald Trump called for ships to pay protection fees.

“We have always been consistent on our stance on fees – IMO stands firmly against charging fees for passage through straits used for international navigation,” a spokesperson said.

“There is no legal basis through which to introduce mandatory tolls simply to transit through a strait.”

President Donald Trump on Monday said the U.S. military would protect commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, while demanding payments equal to 20 per cent of the value of all cargo transported through the waterway.

He also ordered the U.S. Navy to reimpose a blockade on Iranian ships.

“The Hormuz Strait is OPEN, and will remain OPEN, with or without Iran,” Trump said. “We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving.
All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait.”

Iran has previously sought to impose transit fees on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

However, under a memorandum of understanding signed with the United States on June 17, Tehran agreed to suspend such charges for 60 days.