Iranian lawmaker says navigation freedom must not undermine coastal states’ security

Hassan Ghashghavi, spokesman for the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said freedom of navigation at sea must not undermine the security of coastal states.

Operative Information Center-OMM reports that foreign media outlets quoted the lawmaker as making the statement in Tehran.

According to the reports, Ghashghavi stressed that respect for sovereignty and the inadmissibility of aggression are among the fundamental principles of international law.

He said the principle of freedom of navigation cannot be implemented at the expense of the national security and territorial integrity of coastal countries. The lawmaker added that any unilateral military or economic restriction directed against the security interests of a coastal state, including a naval blockade, violates international law and may be regarded as a direct act of war.

The remarks came amid ongoing tensions over maritime security and the passage regime for commercial vessels in and around the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway is a key route for international energy and trade shipments, making its security a matter of regional and global importance.