The Unites States has excluded the development of the Chabahar Port in Iran from the “maximum-pressure” sanctions against Tehran reimposed on November 5. The sanctions are targeting Iran’s energy, shipbuilding, shipping, and banking sectors to exert pressure on the country to abandon its nuclear program, development of ballistic missiles and other “malign activities.” The U.S. Secretary Mike Pompeo granted the exception to the port development and the construction of an assoc

The South China Sea is a major trade route for crude oil, and in 2016, more than 30% of global maritime crude oil trade, or about 15 million barrels per day (b/d), passed through the South China Sea. More than 90% of crude oil volumes flowing through the South China Sea in 2016 transited the Strait of Malacca, the shortest sea route between suppliers in Africa and the Persian Gulf and markets in Asia, making it one of the world’s primary oil transit chokepoints. In addition,