The Iran-backed militia’s ground offensive has reached the Bab al-Mandab, a Red Sea strait that is a choke point for global trade.
The Strait of Malacca may be a model for how Oman and Iran could collect fees in the Strait of Hormuz, but the differences between the waterways are vast.
Aired 3/29/26 PRINCE: The Strait of Hormuz is the center of gravity. The IRGC can choke the global economy overnight. East Asia is already rationing fuel. Ships are forced through Iran’s toll gate. The U.S. Navy doesn’t control key choke points anymore. This is bad.
But at just 35 miles wide, it did. It’s just the latest evidence of how dependent the global economy is on a handful of choke points.
'If your energy supplies depend on a foreign choke point, that's a national security issue.'
A fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait, making it a critical choke point in global commerce.