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https://theconversation.com/red-sea-crisis-suez-canal-is-not-the-only-choke-point-that-threatens-to-disrupt-global-supply-chains-221144>
"The air strikes against targets in Yemen by the US and UK military have not
been without criticism. They aim to keep the Houthis from attacking merchant
vessels in the Bab el-Mandeb strait. Less than 30 ships have been attacked by
Houthis since they seized the Israeli-linked Galaxy Leader vessel in November.
It’s a relatively small number, compared to the thousands of ships that have
passed through the area since.
Unlike the 2021 Suez Canal blockage, traffic is still moving along the shortcut
between Asia and Europe. While it adds one to two weeks of travel time and
around US$1 million (£786,000) in cost, ships can also go around Africa.
In response, container prices have increased sharply, but are not at the levels
reached at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even if the path through the
Red Sea to the Suez Canal becomes unusable, this is hardly unprecedented. The
Suez Canal was closed due to war from 1967 to 1975.
But the reasons for the strikes carried out to protect global trade are likely
to lie deeper than this. Global supply chains have become a lot more important
for everyday life since the 1970s, so the impact of disruptions in the Red Sea
is now much bigger. Also, crucially, Bab el-Mandeb is only one of several
maritime choke points that are vital for world trade."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
