The Strait of Hormuz is just one trade chokepoint facing a new era of maritime warfare

Satellite view of Tuapse Oil Refinery, Russia. Ukrainian drones struck fuel storage tanks at the Rosneft‑operated facility, igniting a major fire visible for kilometers.Gallo Images | Gallo Images | Getty ImagesThe Strait of Hormuz is rattling global trade, but the waterway is just one example of a vital maritime corridor becoming a frontline, in a new age of drones and missiles targeting economic lifelines.From the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea to the Black Sea, attacks on commercial vessels have disrupted trade, raised insurance and freight costs, and forced shipping companies to reconsider routes once treated as dependable.The stakes are high: roughly 80% of global merchandise trade by volume moves by sea. Disrupting even one major route can delay cargo, tighten supplies and drive up prices for energy, food and consumer goods thousands of miles away.How drones are changing maritime warfare"We have a new chokepoint and a new war," David Roche, president and global strategist at Quantum Strategy, wrote in a July report, referring to the Sea of Azov, where Ukrainian drones have been striking Russian tankers, and the Black Sea.Roche described this fighting as the first maritime o...