Lynn Kuok argues that the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz has demonstrated how cheaply and effectively strategic waterways can now be weaponised. Kuok warns that relatively inexpensive drones, missiles, mines and surveillance systems allow weaker powers such as Iran to threaten global trade routes and impose costs on stronger adversaries. The article argues that the precedent could spread across Asia’s maritime chokepoints, including the Strait of Malacca, the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait, through which much of global trade, energy flows and semiconductor shipments pass. Kuek also contends that both China and the United States are increasingly preparing for disruptions in these waterways, including through military exercises, alternative shipping routes and competition over secondary maritime corridors in Indonesia.
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Lynn Kuok argues that the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz has demonstrated how cheaply and effectively strategic waterways can now be weaponised. Kuok warns that relatively inexpensive drones, missiles, mines and surveillance systems allow weaker powers such as Iran to threaten global trade routes and impose costs on stronger adversaries. The article argues that the precedent could spread across Asia’s maritime chokepoints, including the Strait of Malacca, the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait, through which much of global trade, energy flows and semiconductor shipments pass. Kuek also contends that both China and the United States are increasingly preparing for disruptions in these waterways, including through military exercises, alternative shipping routes and competition over secondary maritime corridors in Indonesia.