Recording available: Silk Cage Series – Webinar V: Hormuz in the Silk Cage: China’s Choke Point Strategy by 2030–35
May 7, 2026: The recording of the Silk Cage Series – Webinar V: “Hormuz in the Silk Cage: China’s Choke Point Strategy by 2030–35” is now available on ISDP’s YouTube channel.
This webinar, under the Silk Cage series, examines whether the Strait of Hormuz is becoming another node in China’s evolving strategic cage, where connectivity, commerce, and coercive potential increasingly intersect. Looking toward 2030–35, it asks whether Beijing can convert dependency into dominance, or whether Hormuz will remain the place where China’s global ambitions meet their sharpest limits. In general, this webinar will address the following questions:
- Will the Strait of Hormuz become central to China’s strategic architecture by 2030–35?
- How does the Maritime Silk Road connect Chinese commerce with geopolitical leverage in the Gulf?
- Is post-war Iran becoming China’s strategic asset or strategic liability?
- How significant are Pakistan and Gwadar to China’s Hormuz calculations?
- How are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, and Qatar balancing China’s rise with US security influence?
- Will China eventually need a larger naval role to protect its shipping interests?
- What would a stronger Chinese presence in Hormuz mean for India, Europe, Japan, and the United States?