Iran’s threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — in response to the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran that began on Feb. 28 — effectively closed the strait, sending economic shockwaves around the world. As part of negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Iran has eased restrictions, and shipping traffic has picked up in recent days — albeit well below pre-war levels.Whatever the outcome of negotiations, Iran has clearly demonstrated its ability to shut down the strait. It could happen again. That reality significantly increases incentives for many countries to reduce their reliance on the strait. We asked five experts to consider how key countries are adapting — and what steps they should take going forward.Read more below.Kristian Coates UlrichsenFellow for the Middle East at the Baker Institute and Co-Director of the Middle East Energy RoundtableIndividual Gulf states have responded to the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz — and the likelihood that it could happen again — by accelerating plans to develop workarounds that would lessen, if not eliminate, reliance on the strait. A second pipeline to Fujairah will connect Abu Dhabi’s offshore fields when it opens in 2027. In Saudi Arabia, investment will prioritize the creation of new cross-country road and rail links and the repurposing of Neom — a planned city on the Red Sea coast — into a new industrial center and deepwater port. Some Gulf states are developing new oil storage facilities outside the Gulf region, and both QatarEnergy and the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company are investing in upstream and midstream partnerships and joint ventures overseas. So far, Gulf governments’ responses mostly have been country-specific. The next step may be to deepen the processes of security, defense, and economic integration at the Gulf Cooperation Council level, although this would require political will that hitherto
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