Chokeholds and Cormorants

I’ll bet most of us have seen a cormorant or two. They are generally black birds with a really long snaky neck that may be seen hanging around bodies of water diving for fish. They have been domesticated around the world for fishing. All you need to do is tame one and tie a cord around its neck. Not too tight now (but tight enough)! The cord acts as a leash. The idea is that the bird will jump into the water, chase down a fish and swallow it – maybe. If the fish is small, no problem, but the big ones get caught in its throat. Drag the critter back into the boat, make it toss up the troublesome prey and viola you got yourself dinner! Videos show Japanese fishermen plying this trade if you’re interested.

One important detail becomes my focus: whoever holds the leash controls the results. Doesn’t this remind you of the Strait of Hormuz? Who does have rights to this chokepoint?

Perhaps we can start with how the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) defines territorial waters – 12 miles offshore sorta. It’s tricky. The Strait is about 24 miles wide. Oman sits on the west side so the two countries should split the difference but there are “lanes” defined for coming and going to avoid collisions. While both are pretty much in Omani waters, Iran feels they have some contestable rights so they recently instituted the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) designed not as a toll (which all agree wouldn’t be legal per the UN) but as a service fee. Small craft can apparently pass right through but the bigger ones are in a quandary.

This PGSA service fee is quite expensive. The U S doesn’t approve, averring this restraint unbearably tightens the chokehold. There’s no telling how it will end of course and this is by no means the only time the Straight has been closed. Who lets go of the leash first may be the deciding factor. Let’s hope it is not pried out of someone’s cold, dead hands. (by J R Capps, President Emeritus, Atlas Indicators)