OPINION 

As tensions with Iran threaten shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, policymakers and businesses are searching for ways to keep trade flying between Asia, the Mideast, and Europe.

While a practical solution already exists for the Asia-to-Gulf segment in the form of the "Green Corridor" connecting Oman and Dubai - another potential route is worth paying attention to.

Over the past several years, the diplomatic breakthroughs of the Abraham Accords opened new channels of cooperation between Israel and several Arab states, gradually shifting the Mideast toward a framework based more on economic integration, strategic partnerships, and practical cooperation.

Those breakthroughs were closely associated with the diplomatic push led by President Donald Trump, whose administration advanced a more pragmatic approach to Mideastern diplomacy - emphasizing economic cooperation and regional partnerships rather than attempting to impose sweeping political solutions that often proved unrealistic in the past.

In many ways., the current crisis is testing whether that emerging regional framework can also deliver practical economic resilience.

For decades, global commerce has depended heavily on maritime routes passing through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical energy chokepoints.

Recent tensions have already pushed war-risk insurance premiums for vessels operating in the Gulf to roughly five to 10 times their normal levels, prompting some companies to reconsider how they route cargo through the region.

Shipping delays also disrupt industries that rely on time-sensitive cargo, from electronic components to industrial equipment.

In this environment, the India-Mideast-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), announced in 2023 as a natural extension of the regional cooperation framework created by the Abraham Accords, shifts from a strategic concept to a potential solution.

According to the 2023 IMEC Memorandum of Understanding, signed at the G-20 Summit in New Delhi, the IMEC Corridor was designed to link India, the Gulf, Israel, and Europe through two complementary routes: an eastern corridor connecting India to the Arabian Gulf, and a northern corridor - a land-based route linking the Gulf with the Mediterranean through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Israel via ports, railways, and energy and digital infrastructure.

In a twist of circumstances, the eastern corridor - the segment of the IMEC initiative that had actually been operating in practice until the current crisis - is now constrained by the security risks surrounding shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

This disruption, however, highlights the strategic relevance of IMEC's northern leg - while this segment has so far progressed slowly due to regional political sensitivities, the current crisis underscores why activating it may now be more important than ever.

Cargo already presents in Gulf ports, as well as goods produced in the Gulf and destined for European markets, could instead move overland across the Arabian Peninsula to Israeli Mediterranean ports, from where they could be shipped onward to Europe, bypassing the security risks currently affecting maritime routes in the region.

The same route could also operate in the opposite direction, allowing cargo from Europe to move efficiently toward Gulf markets.

In other words, even without a functioning India-to-Gulf link, the northern leg of the IMEC corridor could already serve as a practical two-way logistics route connecting the Gulf and Europe.

Contrary to some common assumptions, such a route would not necessarily require waiting years for massive new infrastructure projects.

Parts of the logistical chain already exist today and could be scaled up using current transport networks and regional partnerships.

That makes the corridor particularly relevant in moments like the present one, when geopolitical tensions create sudden shocks to global supply chains and leave cargo flows in the Gulf facing uncertainty.

From Washington's perspective, supporting this type of regional connectivity could serve several strategic objectives at once.

By connecting the Gulf, Israel, and Europe through a network of economic partnerships, the corridor would strengthen integration among America's regional partners while helping diversify global supply chains.

This is particularly significant given the scale of existing trade flows: according to the IMF and OECD, supply chains linking India, Europe, and the United States already account for well over $2 trillion in annual trade.

Strengthening the northern corridor linking the Gulf with Mediterranean ports and European markets would therefore reinforce this emerging economic axis while helping counterbalance China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

In that sense, a functioning IMEC corridor would do more than move cargo.

Under American leadership, it could strengthen a network of cooperation among countries that share an interest in open trade routes, regional stability, and economic partnership.

By connecting India, the Gulf, Israel, and Europe through a framework of economic partnerships, such a corridor would reinforce alliances across key regions of global commerce while helping ensure that the United States remains a central architect of the emerging economic order linking Asia, the Mideast, and Europe.

IMEConnect is an independent geoeconomic platform focused on turning IMEC from a political declaration into real-world implementation through cross-corridor diplomatic, research, and business connectivity.