The council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) agreed on Friday that member states should reject Iran's attempts to assert sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran's "unilateral decision" to establish a body to control navigation through the waterway.
The serious attacks have raised concerns about the recovery of global oil supplies and maritime shipping, and have highlighted the fragility of the temporary truce aimed at ending a war that has lasted more than four months, at a time when the United States and Iran are working to reach a permanent agreement.
The United Nations agency, headquartered in London, is responsible for regulating the safety and security of international shipping and preventing pollution, and has 176 member states.
The protection of vital shipping lanes was discussed at a session held this week by its 40-member governing council.
A non-binding resolution reached at the session stated that "the IMO Council strongly condemns" Iran's decision "to establish an entity claiming control over navigation through the Strait."
The council's resolution called on member states not to recognise "Iran's claim to sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, and its assertions that maritime zones of third states within and adjacent to the Strait fall under its jurisdiction, which violates the sovereignty, sovereign rights, and exclusive jurisdiction of those states," and not to recognise any Iranian decisions aimed at "preventing, hindering, or impeding international navigation and the right of transit passage, or interfering with them in any other manner."