The goods that flow through the Strait of Malacca have become a foundation of Singapore’s prosperity and a symbol of a peaceful era of booming global trade. But, under different circumstances, the Strait of Malacca could become an international flash point. At its narrowest point – between Singapore and Indonesia – the strait is just two and a half miles wide. And yet most of the oil that China imports from the outside world must pass through this thin windpipe. Three times as much oil passes through the Malacca Strait every year – en route to East Asia – as goes through the Suez Canal.2
