Maritime Chokepoints and the Fragility of Global Economic Security

Maritime chokepoints stand in a paradoxical position in the international legal order. On one hand they constitute indispensable arteries of global trade, and on the other hand their security depends upon a fragmented arrangement of coastal sovereignty along with war-laden navigational freedoms, disconnected collective security mechanisms and patchy private commercial decisions. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) protects transit passage through the international straits. However, it does not guarantee the conditions required for uninterrupted commercial navigation. This paper examines the divergence between legal navigability and operational accessibility, using the Strait of Hormuz as its principal case study. It argues that conventional understandings of freedom of navigation do not address the economic consequences of armed conflict, non-state interference, maritime insurance restrictions, and anticipatory commercial withdrawal. The paper introduces the concept of the “Operational Passage Gap” to distinguish legal entitlement from effective access to international waterways. Additionally, it proposes a framework of cooperative navigational resilience rooted in the existing international maritime law. The framework underscores the importance of enhanced institutional coordination and transparent risk governance. The paper concludes by stating that the principal challenge is the inadequacy of legal and institutional arrangements for preserving the exercise of navigational rights during geopolitical instability.