en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Hormuz
4 corrections found
As of 2013, the UNCLOS treaty had been ratified by 63 states, including most NATO-bloc and Soviet-bloc nations but with the notable exceptions of most of the OPEC and Arab League nations like Syria, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Iran, as well as China, North Korea, and South Korea.
This is incorrect. In 2013 the UN said UNCLOS had 165 parties including the EU, and countries named here as supposed non-parties—such as Egypt and South Korea—had already ratified years earlier.
Full reasoning
A UN report from the 23rd Meeting of States Parties in June 2013 states that three new accessions had brought the total number of UNCLOS States Parties to 165, including the European Union. That alone contradicts the claim that there were only 63 ratifications in 2013.
The sentence is also wrong about which countries were supposedly exceptions. Official UN Treaty Collection records show:
- Egypt ratified UNCLOS with registration date 16 November 1994.
- Republic of Korea (South Korea) ratified UNCLOS with registration date 29 January 1996.
So Egypt and South Korea were already parties long before 2013 and could not correctly be listed as notable exceptions. Because the sentence gets both the overall number and named examples wrong, it is factually incorrect.
3 sources
- Report of the twenty-third Meeting of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (SPLOS/263)
The President noted ... three more States ... had ratified or acceded to the Convention, bringing the total number of States Parties to 165, including the European Union.
- UN Treaty Collection — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea — Egypt
Agreement Title United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ... Participant(s) Egypt ... Type of Action Ratification ... Registration Date 16/11/1994.
- UN Treaty Collection — United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea — Republic of Korea
Agreement Title United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ... Participant(s) Republic of Korea ... Type of Action Ratification ... Registration Date 29/01/1996.
As of February 2026, 157 sovereign states, including the EU are parties, including all major powers except the U.S., which has not ratified the treaty.
The count is wrong. The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea says there are currently 172 States Parties to UNCLOS, not 157.
Full reasoning
The official International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea page on UNCLOS states: "There are currently 172 States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea." That directly contradicts the article's claim that there were 157 parties as of February 2026.
So even aside from the sentence's other phrasing issues, its headline number of parties is incorrect.
1 source
- States Parties | International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea
There are currently 172 States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
By 2025, around 15 million barrels (2.4 million cubic metres) of oil per day were transported through the strait. Onshore pipelines have a maximum capacity of around 3 million barrels.
These figures are too low. EIA estimated roughly 20.9 million barrels per day through Hormuz in the first half of 2025, and bypass pipeline capacity at about 4.7 million b/d from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, plus about 0.3 million b/d from Iran's Goreh-Jask line.
Full reasoning
The U.S. Energy Information Administration's March 2026 chokepoints analysis says that in the first half of 2025, total oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz averaged 20.9 million barrels per day, not "around 15 million."
The same EIA analysis also says that Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline and the UAE's Abu Dhabi pipeline together could provide about 4.7 million b/d of bypass capacity, and that Iran's Goreh-Jask pipeline has an effective capacity of around 0.3 million b/d. That means the article's claim that onshore pipelines have a maximum capacity of only around 3 million barrels substantially understates bypass capacity.
So both numbers in this passage are materially incorrect according to the EIA's published estimates.
2 sources
- World Oil Transit Chokepoints — U.S. Energy Information Administration
In 1H25, total oil flows through the strait averaged 20.9 million b/d ... Saudi Aramco's East-West crude oil pipeline and the UAE's Abu Dhabi pipeline together could provide about 4.7 million b/d of capacity to bypass the strait ... The pipeline's effective capacity remains around 0.3 million b/d.
- Amid regional conflict, the Strait of Hormuz remains critical oil chokepoint - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
In 2024, oil flow through the strait averaged 20 million barrels per day (b/d) ... In the first quarter of 2025, total oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz remained relatively flat compared with 2024.
It is also the only maritime route for several Gulf countries including UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq
This overstates the case because the UAE is not dependent on Hormuz as its only sea outlet. The UAE has Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman, outside the Strait of Hormuz, and EIA notes the UAE can bypass the strait via its Fujairah export route.
Full reasoning
This sentence is inaccurate because it includes the United Arab Emirates in a list of countries for which the Strait of Hormuz is supposedly the only maritime route.
But the UAE has an east-coast maritime outlet at Fujairah, which is outside the Strait of Hormuz on the Gulf of Oman. The Port of Fujairah describes itself as the only multi-purpose maritime facility on the east coast of the UAE and says it is located 70 nautical miles outside the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. Energy Information Administration likewise notes that the UAE operates a pipeline linking its oil fields to the Fujairah export terminal in the Gulf of Oman, explicitly bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.
So while Hormuz is crucial for much Gulf shipping, it is not the UAE's only maritime route.
2 sources
- About Us | Port of Fujairah
The Port of Fujairah is the only multi-purpose maritime facility on the east coast of the United Arab Emirates. Strategically located just 70 nautical miles outside the Strait of Hormuz...
- Amid regional conflict, the Strait of Hormuz remains critical oil chokepoint - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)
The UAE also operates a pipeline that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz. This 1.8 million-b/d pipeline links onshore oil fields to the Fujairah export terminal in the Gulf of Oman.