US blocks global tariffs on shipping emissions as international meeting ends without new regulations

The United States successfully blocked global tariffs on shipping emissions, with an international maritime meeting postponed on Friday without adopting regulations.

The world’s largest maritime nations have been deliberating whether to adopt regulations to move the shipping industry away from fossil fuels to cut emissions. But US President Donald Trump, Saudi Arabia and other countries have pledged to fight any global tax on shipping emissions.

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The United States threatened to respond if countries supported it. Trump urged countries to vote “no” at the International Maritime Organization headquarters in London, and posted on his social media platform Truth Social on Thursday that “the United States will not support this new global green fraud tax on shipping.”

The International Maritime Organization is the United Nations agency that regulates international shipping.

Saudi Arabia called for a vote to postpone the meeting for a year. More than half of the countries agreed to this.

“You now have one year to continue working on several aspects of these amendments,” said Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization, in his closing remarks. “You have one year to negotiate, talk and reach consensus.”

Ralph Regenvanu, climate change minister for the Pacific nation of Vanuatu, said the decision was unacceptable, “given the urgency we face in light of accelerating climate change.”

If green shipping regulations are adopted, it will be the first time a global tariff has been imposed on greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. Most ships today run on heavy fuel oil, which releases carbon dioxide and other pollutants as it burns.

“The delay leaves the shipping sector drifting in uncertainty,” said Alison Shaw, IMO Director for Transport and Environment, a Brussels-based environmental NGO. “But this week also showed that there is a clear desire to clean up the shipping industry, even in the face of US bullying.”

Shipping emissions have increased over the past decade to about 3% of the global total as trade grows and ships use vast amounts of fossil fuels to transport goods over long distances. In April, IMO member states agreed on the contents of the regulatory framework, with the aim of adopting a “net zero framework” at this London meeting.

Emma Fenton, senior director of climate diplomacy at UK-based non-profit Opportunity Green, said the aim of adopting the regulations is to demonstrate how effective multilateral cooperation can be in achieving real progress on global climate goals. They added that delaying the process threatens to undermine the framework’s ambitions.

The regulations will establish a marine fuel standard that reduces over time the amount of greenhouse gas emissions allowed from the use of shipping fuel. The regulations will also create a pricing system that imposes a fee on every ton of greenhouse gases emitted by ships above permissible limits, in what is effectively the first global tax on greenhouse gas emissions.

The International Maritime Organization, which regulates international shipping, has set a target for the sector to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by around 2050, and has committed to ensuring that zero or near-zero emission fuels are used more widely.

“What matters now is for countries to stand up and return to the IMO with a louder, more confident yes that cannot be silenced,” said Anaïs Rios, shipping policy officer at Seas At Risk. “The planet and the future of shipping have no time to waste.”

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