Hormuz’s Warning: Asia’s Waterways Face a New Era of Vulnerability
Lynn Kuok argues that Iran’s coercive actions in the Strait of Hormuz demonstrate how modern, affordable tech enables weaker states to disrupt critical chokepoints, elevating risk for Asia’s sea lanes such as Malacca, the Taiwan Strait, and Luzon. A disruption could trigger global trade and semiconductor supply shocks, prompting a broader strategic contest across the Indo-Pacific. The piece urges the United States and allies to boost maritime awareness, deter disruption through coordinated transit protection, develop secondary ports and routes, diversify semiconductor production, and push to join UNCLOS to reinforce lawful transit. Ultimately, Hormuz acts as a blueprint for envisioning and mitigating similar pressures on Asia’s waterways.