Bottlenecks in world trade, places of piracy, disputed areas or potential hot spots of conflict, the Figaro explores six strategic straits at the heart of the geopolitical challenges of a rapidly changing world which have marked history: Gibraltar, Bering, Bab al-Mandab, Taiwan, Bosphorus, Ormuz.
Special Envoy to Bab Al-Mandab
In the darkness of an inky night, warships advance through the Strait of Bab al-Mandab.
Legend has it that this name (“door of lamentations”) was given in reference to the complaints of those who drowned there during the tectonic separation of Africa and Asia.
“
When we descend the Red Sea, the only lights that we see are those of the Anish Islands, the only inhabited lands in the Strait of Bab al-Mandab.
This absolute darkness has always impressed me
, ”recalls a sailor, who crossed this strait about twenty times, around thirty kilometers wide, slender passage between the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Read also:
The thousand and one secrets of the Bosphorus Strait
At the joint
This article is for subscribers only.
You have 89% left to discover.
Freedom has no borders, like your curiosity.
Continue reading your article for € 1 for 2 months
I ENJOY IT
Already subscribed?
Log in