US threatens sanctions over global shipping carbon tax

The United States on Friday warned it may impose sanctions and other punitive measures on any country that votes in favour of a carbon tax on maritime transport, to be implemented through a United Nations agency.

"We will fight hard to protect our economic interests by imposing costs on countries if they support" the Net Zero Framework, said a joint statement by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his counterparts at the departments of Energy and Transportation.

Members of the London-based International Maritime Organization (IMO) are scheduled to vote next week on the adoption of the Net Zero Framework (NZF), aimed at cutting global carbon emissions from the shipping sector.


Washington, however, described the proposal as imposing "a global carbon tax on the world."

Since returning to power in January, US President Donald Trump has reversed Washington's climate policies, denouncing them as a "scam" and promoting fossil fuel use through deregulation.

In the statement, Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the Trump administration "unequivocally rejects" the NZF proposal.

They warned of a range of potential measures against countries that vote in favor, including visa restrictions, blocking vessels registered in those countries from US ports, imposing commercial penalties, and considering sanctions on officials.

"The United States will be moving to levy these remedies against nations that sponsor this European-led neocolonial export of global climate regulations," the statement added.