While the world focuses on the Middle East conflict and constricted oil and LNG flows through the Strait of Hormuz, worries about other maritime chokepoints are creeping up in Asia. The region is heavily dependent on imported oil and gas and relies on maritime routes to export its goods. The Malacca and Taiwan straits stand out as Asia’s two major passageways that could easily be choked. China, the world’s largest oil and gas importer and largest goods exporter, needs Malacca to remain open, but concerns are growing that it is taking advantage of the diversion created by the US-Iran conflict to become more assertive in its backyard, which could fragilize the Taiwan strait.