Foreign Policy: Iranian warships are heading to the Atlantic... Why can't America touch them?

America cannot take any action against Iranian ships currently heading to Venezuela, even if they are carrying shipments that violate US sanctions on Caracas, and the costs of any direct US action against them will be heavy.

This was stated

American "Foreign Policy"

analyst Cornell Overfield, commenting on the movement of two Iranian warships and a frigate to the Atlantic Ocean on their way to Venezuela.

US national security officials have expressed concern about these ships violating US sanctions, and Senator Marco Rubio has called on Washington to block their access to Venezuela.

Danger to American ships

The writer said that any US action against these ships would be illegal and would undermine one of the basic principles of the international system: sovereign immunity, and its costs would be prohibitive, exposing the United States to accusations of hypocrisy toward the rules-based system and possibly exposing US naval vessels to similar treatment by adversaries.

Overfield explained that Washington had intercepted several cargo ships suspected of transporting Iranian oil in violation of US and European Union sanctions, noting that the matter was different this time.

The current ships are part of the Iranian Navy.

Under international law, the law of the sea, customary or traditional, grants warships and other government ships sovereign immunity.

Failed states and weapons of mass destruction

In times of peace, sovereign immunity is in practice a powerful guard against the jurisdiction of a foreign state.

Exceptions may apply in extreme circumstances involving failed states, counterfeit warships, or weapons of mass destruction.

The writer added that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea defines warships as ships "of the armed forces" under the command of an officer on the service list and manned by a crew in good condition, saying that it is clear that both the Iranian ships and the frigate - whose name was not mentioned - clearly correspond to the Definition of warship under the United Nations Convention.

Sovereign immunity is absolute

He explained that sovereign immunity on the high seas is absolute, as Article 95 simply states: “Warships on the high seas enjoy complete immunity from the jurisdiction of any state other than the flag state,” and Article 96 provides for the same absolute immunity for government-owned or operated vessels. in the high seas.

This right also applies in the exclusive economic zones, where nothing in this section invalidates the provisions.

Overfield goes on to explain that even in the territorial sea, sovereign immunity remains a strong protection, and inland waters, such as ports, are not fundamentally different.

Of course, the warship would need the coastal state's permission to enter inland waters.