Maritime Security

 

The United Nations Security Council can take action to maintain or restore international peace and security under Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter. Sanctions measures, imposed under Article 41, encompass a broad range of enforcement options to avoid the use of armed force, which can be authorized under Article 42.

 
 

The Security Council has currently adopted 14 sanctions regimes to support peaceful transitions from civil or cross-border wars, constrain terrorism, prevent atrocities and promote non-proliferation.

Sanctions are promulgated in response to specific threats or threat actors, regardless whether these are illegally armed militias in civil wars, state aggressors in cross border wars, WMD proliferators or terrorists and their supporters.

Sanctions measures, designed to restore international peace and security,can range from comprehensive economic and trade restrictions to more targeted measures such as arms, commodity or other goods embargoes, and almost in all regimes an individual assets freeze and travel ban.

UN sanctions can restrict the sovereign rights of a State’s maritime and aviation transportation systems if they are instrumental in the smuggling of arms, conflict-commodities, or systematically violate international safety regulations.

This section focuses on the maritime dimensions of sanctions, which includes vessels and related cargo, and its nexus with industry role-players.