Landmark judgement against African State

Equatorial Guinea ordered to pay multi-million dollar compensation after detaining Marshall Islands-flagged tanker and crew for 92 days

Equatorial Guinea has been found to have unlawfully arrested and detained a Marshall Islands-flagged very large crude carrier (VLCC) and its 26-man crew, and must pay compensation exceeding US$ 12 million plus EUR 2 million in a landmark ruling by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).

The judgment, handed down on 27 May 2026 by a Special Chamber of the tribunal, establishes that a coastal state cannot seize a foreign-flagged vessel in another country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) on the basis of an unsubstantiated piracy allegation, even when acting on a request from a third country.

The ruling is significant for freedom of navigation in the Gulf of Guinea, a region where maritime security operations have sometimes led to contested vessel seizures. The tribunal found that Equatorial Guinea violated the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) by intercepting the vessel, fining its master, mistreating crew members and transferring them to a third state without due process.

Compensation awarded

The Special Chamber awarded the Marshall Islands compensation across a range of heads of damage. These include US$ 5.9 million for loss of hire during the detention period; US$ 4.186 million for non-material damages suffered by the crew (US$ 1,750 per crew member per day); EUR 2,000,132 representing the unlawful fine imposed on the vessel's master; US$ 939,334.56 for bunker expenses; US$ 300,000 for drydocking and repairs; US$ 276,296.99 for medical and correspondent costs; US$ 265,973.47 in additional crew salaries; US$ 100,000 for crew repatriation and replacement; US$ 75,295.88 in port and agency fees; US$ 54,000 in war risk premium costs; and US$ 5,683.21 in travel costs. Interest was also awarded on most of the claims.

Background to the case

The dispute centres on events of 12 August 2022, when the VLCC was drifting in the EEZ of São Tomé and Príncipe. An Equatoguinean naval vessel approached and ordered it to stop engines and follow it to a port in Equatorial Guinea. The naval vessel warned it had received orders to shoot in the event of any suspect operation.

Equatorial Guinea had acted on requests from Nigerian authorities, who had asked it to track and arrest the vessel, alleging it had entered Nigerian territorial waters to load crude oil without authorisation. The VLCC arrived at Luba anchorage on 13 August 2022. Equatoguinean authorities boarded and inspected the vessel the following day and transferred part of the crew to a facility in Malabo, while the remainder stayed aboard. The vessel and crew were held for 92 days before being transferred to Nigeria on 11 November 2022, where they remained detained until 27 May 2023.

The vessel subsequently sailed to South Africa, arriving on 7 June 2023, and then to the United Arab Emirates, where it underwent inspection and repairs in early July 2023.

The tribunal's findings

Equatorial Guinea argued the seizure was justified as an anti-piracy measure under UNCLOS and the Yaoundé Code of Conduct, the regional framework for combating maritime crime in West and Central Africa, but this was rejected by the Special Chamber rejected this defence who found that there was no adequate grounds for the piracy suspicion.

It noted that Equatorial Guinea had made no inquiries to clarify the nature of the vessel's activities during the approximately 60 hours between receiving Nigeria's request and intercepting the ship. Under UNCLOS, piracy requires acts directed against another vessel and involving an element of force. No such allegations featured in Nigeria's communications to Equatorial Guinea.

The tribunal also found unlawful the fine levied on the master, which had been imposed on two grounds: that the vessel had entered Equatorial Guinea's EEZ without prior authorisation, and that it had failed to display a physical flag while navigating in that zone. UNCLOS, the tribunal ruled, provides no basis for a coastal state to impose such requirements or to take enforcement measures for non-compliance with them.

On the treatment of the crew, the tribunal found by four votes to one that conditions and procedural injustices during detention, including the forced transfer to Nigeria without due process, violated the Marshall Islands' rights under UNCLOS. The Yaoundé Code, the tribunal held, cannot confer on its signatories powers over vessels of non-signatory states beyond those already permitted by UNCLOS.

The case was brought to the Special Chamber by a special agreement between the Marshall Islands and Equatorial Guinea concluded in April 2023. Hearings were held in October 2025.

Judgement welcomed by Flag State

The Republic of the Marshall Islands has welcomed the judgment, who took the steps to bring a case before ITLOS for the first time.

“It was important for the Marshall Islands to bring this case forward to protect the fundamental rules and principles of law for flag States, the humane and fair treatment of seafarers, the safety of vessels and the marine environment, and all engaged in international maritime trade,” said Meredith Kirby, Deputy Commissioner of Maritime Affairs, Marshall Islands Maritime Administrator, and Agent for the Marshall Islands in the case.

“This judgment reaffirms the paramount importance of freedom of navigation and the principle of exclusive flag State jurisdiction on the high seas,” she continued.

 As stated by Kirby in her opening statement, “the [international marine transportation] system only works if all parties involved respect and abide by the rules and agreements in place; that is true for the vessels, true for the crews, and vitally important for both the flag State and coastal and port States.”

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