After the Strait of Hormuz, Trump shifts attention to Africa's vital maritime chokepoint carrying 12% of global trade
As attacks on commercial shipping continue to disrupt the Red Sea, the Trump administration is increasingly turning its attention to Africas Horn, seeking to prevent another critical maritime corridor from becoming a prolonged security crisis. | Business Insider Africa
As attacks on commercial shipping continue to disrupt the Red Sea, the Trump administration is increasingly turning its attention to Africa's Horn, seeking to prevent another critical maritime corridor from becoming a prolonged security crisis. After months of focusing on securing the Strait of Hormuz—a vital passage for global oil exports—the White House is now quietly expanding its diplomatic engagement with African states bordering the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and, ultimately, the Suez Canal. The move highlights Africa's growing strategic importance in global trade as disruptions to key shipping lanes threaten energy markets, supply chains and international commerce. This month, White House adviser for Arab and African affairs Massad Boulos met with the foreign ministers of Somalia and Eritrea in Cairo alongside Egyptian officials to discuss security cooperation in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea. The meetings come amid renewed concerns over the safety of vessels transiting the Bab el-Mandeb, where attacks on commercial ships have forced some shipping companies to reroute vessels around southern Africa, adding thousands of nautical miles to journeys between Europe and Asia. Why Africa's Red Sea coast mattersThe Bab el-Mandeb Strait is one of the world's most strategically important maritime chokepoints. Situated between Yemen and Djibouti, it serves as the southern gateway to the Suez Canal, through which roughly 12% of global trade passes. Its importance has grown further as geopolitical tensions simultaneously threaten the Strait of Hormuz, another critical artery for global energy exports. With instability affecting both waterways, Washington appears to be broadening its maritime security strategy beyond the Gulf to include the African coastline bordering the Red Sea. Analysts say the approach reflects an effort not only to prevent hostile actors from exploiting instability in the Horn of Africa but also to ensure that countries such as Somalia and Eritrea do not become sources of additional disruption to international shipping. "The US seems to be saying, 'You can't be helpful to us in the Red Sea, so let's at least make you a neutral actor,'" Cameron Hudson, a former White House official during the George W. Bush administration, told Bloomberg. The renewed engagement also comes as global powers continue competing for influence across the Horn of Africa, home to some of the world's busiest shipping routes and military installations. The region already hosts military facilities belonging to the United States, China, France, Japan and several Gulf states, reflecting its growing geopolitical value. For Africa, the increased diplomatic attention highlights the continent's evolving role in global commerce. Beyond supplying critical minerals and energy resources, African countries along the Red Sea are becoming increasingly central to safeguarding the maritime routes that connect Europe, the Middle East and Asia. As security risks spread across the region, the Trump administration's latest outreach suggests that protecting global trade may now depend as much on stability along Africa's coastline as it does on events in the Persian Gulf.