These key sea lanes of communication (SLOCs) are China’s “lifeline” because they connect it to vital resources and markets – most notably, the 80 percent of China’s oil imports and critical minerals that flow from Africa and the Middle East, and the major export markets of India and Europe. From there, it exits through the Suez Canal and into the Mediterranean. The other continues on to the Horn of Africa and funnels through the Bab al Mandeb Strait into the Red Sea. One lane skirts the northern tier of the Arabian Sea and transits through the Hormuz Strait into the Persian Gulf. Passing west of the Indian subcontinent, it splits in two. The port’s most important quality is its geographic position as a gateway between western China and the Indian Ocean (pictured above, with red lines representing real and proposed road, rail, and pipeline infrastructure, and blue lines representing major commercial sea lanes).Ĭhina’s “maritime lifeline” (海上生命线) runs from the Taiwan Strait, through the South China Sea, and into the Indian Ocean via the Malacca Straits. Naval War College finds that Gwadar already serves Beijing’s foreign policy – regardless of whether it becomes a military facility. While we should not rule out that possibility, a recent case study of the port by scholars at the China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) at the U.S. Foreign analysts often consider the long-suffering commercial venture to be a likely site for the next People’s Liberation Army (PLA) overseas base. The port of Gwadar, on Pakistan’s Makran coastline near the Strait of Hormuz, is owned and operated by a Chinese firm. Careers, Fellowships, and Internships Open/Close.Science and Technology Innovation Program.The Middle East and North Africa Workforce Development Initiative.Kissinger Institute on China and the United States. ![]() Nuclear Proliferation International History Project.North Korea International Documentation Project.Environmental Change and Security Program.Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy.
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