(C): X
Under a more unstable geopolitical atmosphere, a sense of principle is uncommon–but when it is to be heard, it carries. It was exactly what happened when Vivian Balakrishnan as the official representative of the Parliament spoke on the current issues of the growing tensions between the Strait of Hormuz on April 7, 2026.
His words were simple: Singapore is not going to negotiate with Iran, nor to pay any toll on passage. He more importantly framed the situation not as a situation of diplomacy or convenience, but of law.
The essence of the argument by Balakrishnan is inserted at the very centre of the international law of maritime. The transit passage through international straits is awarded under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
“It is not an honor bestowed, or a privilege to be invited, or a fee to be paid”, said Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in his statement.
When world superpowers start negotiating transit rights, it is a dangerous precedent, in the sense that possession of strategic chokepoints can be used as a bargaining chip to score political or economic points. The global trading routes are susceptible to being coerced in such a situation.
A striking comparison that Balakrishnan used to illustrate his point further. Singapore itself is located on one of the busiest and narrowest shipping routes in the world. But the very fact, as he has mentioned, that the country has never seriously thought of breaking international law despite the strategic potential that it would have gained.
The difference is very diverse: Singapore strait measures only 2 nautical miles only, whereas the navigable passage in Strait of Hormuz measures 21 nautical miles.
The implication is obvious, when a country such as Singapore could act in accordance with the international standards in stricter limitations, there is not much rationale of actions which disrupt it in other regions.
It is not a question of the position of one country. The Strait of Hormuz is a blood line of energy supply in the world with much of the oil supply of the world flowing through Hormuz on a daily basis. Any interruption- or effort to levy tolls- could have instantaneous repercussions on world markets, energy costs, and economic health.
When Vivian Balakrishnan declines to play along in what he implicitly dictated to be coercive tactics, he is attempting to send a bigger signal: global trade should be ruled by rules and not power politics.
Opponents may call that a very toughline position that can threaten tension building or the ability to offer diplomatic flexibility. After all, pragmatism is a weak substitute to principle in geopolitics.
The position of Singapore however, heralds the reverse that long-term consistency is pegged on consistency in the maintenance of international law even where it is otherwise inconvenient. When exemptions are granted, they have the tendency to proliferate, and it undermines structures that hold systems in the world together.
This scene itself is representative of some larger conflict in the world: law vs leverage. Will international waterways continue as a neutral domain where there are agreed-upon rules, or will they be used as instruments of strategic bargaining?The comments by Balakrishnan on Strait of Hormuz are not a mere policy stance, but a wake-up call. geopolitically in a world where friction is increasing, the integrity of international trade will not be determined by the power and more by the goodwill of countries to abide by the set rules that bind them.
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