Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz is forcing a reassessment of the waterway’s long-term viability as a regional export route (MEES, 27 March). Policymakers are again drawing lines on maps in search of corridors and alternative routes for Middle Eastern energy supplies to international markets. Damascus, and its backers in Washington, see an opportunity for Syria to serve as a possible conduit. But geography and security considerations limit its prospects.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa visited Germany and the UK this week, his first trip to both countries, where he pitched Syria’s geographical location as a “link between East and West.” (CONTINUED - 929 WORDS)
