How the War with Iran is Redrawing the Rules of Maritime Power

Following the intensification of the Israeli-US military campaign against Iran’s nuclear program in spring 2025, the region stretching from the Gulf to the Mediterranean has entered a new phase of strategic turbulence. Beyond missile strikes, air operations, and tensions over Iran’s nuclear program, the conflict is highlighting a deeper transformation affecting the entire region: the increasing politicization and securitization of connectivity. For decades, globalization has fostered the idea that maritime routes, energy infrastructure, and logistics corridors are relatively stable elements of the global economy. However, in a fragmenting international landscape, this assumption is no longer viable. Rather, it has become a tool for political pressure, strategic coercion, and geopolitical competition.