Bahrain has circulated a revised U.N. Security Council draft resolution on protecting commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz, retaining language authorising “all necessary means” but dropping an explicit reference to binding enforcement.
Shipping through the waterway, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supplies pass and which underpins Gulf economies, has already slowed to a near-halt after Iran struck vessels amid its conflict with the United States and Israel.
Bahrain’s initial draft, seen by Reuters and backed by other Gulf Arab states and Washington, explicitly invoked Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, which allows the Security Council to authorise measures ranging from sanctions to military force.
Diplomats said adoption of such a resolution would have been unlikely, as Iran’s partners Russia and China were expected to veto it if necessary.
A Security Council resolution requires at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes from its five permanent members: the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France.
The revised text seen by Reuters, which diplomats said is still under negotiation, removes the reference to Chapter VII, but retains language associated with it.
It would authorise states, acting alone or through voluntary multinational naval coalitions, to use “all necessary means commensurate with the circumstances” in the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman to ensure passage and prevent interference with international navigation, including within or near territorial waters.
The draft also encourages states that rely on commercial maritime routes through the strait to coordinate defensive efforts, including the escort of merchant vessels.
Diplomats said there was a tentative aim to put the text to a vote on Thursday.
(Reporting by John Irish; Editing by Alison Williams)