The Red Sea is a narrow inlet of the Indian Ocean between Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, covering approximately 438,000 square kilometers. Despite its relatively small size, it is one of the most strategically vital waterways on Earth, carrying approximately 10% of global seaborne trade and serving as the primary passage between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal.
Global Chokepoint: The Red Sea is bounded by two of the world's most critical maritime choke points: Bab-el-Mandeb in the south (connecting to the Indian Ocean) and the Suez Canal in the north (connecting to the Mediterranean). Any disruption here — as seen during the Houthi attacks in 2023–2024 — forces ships to reroute around Africa, adding 7–14 days and significant costs to journeys.
The Red Sea is one of the world's saltiest and warmest seas, with minimal freshwater input and extremely high evaporation. It runs approximately 1,930 km north–south and averages only 280–300 km in width — making it narrow relative to the immense volume of traffic it carries.
The Red Sea connects the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, making it the most time-efficient route for trade between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.
World's most economically significant canal
Major Disruption: Beginning in late 2023, Houthi forces in Yemen launched repeated drone and missile attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. By early 2024, over 50% of container traffic had diverted away from the Red Sea, adding massive costs to global supply chains and re-routing ships around the Cape of Good Hope for the first time since Suez Canal expansion.
Egypt:
Saudi Arabia:
Others:
Saudi Vision 2030: Saudi Arabia is investing billions in expanding Red Sea port capacity, including the NEOM/OXAGON project — a planned industrial maritime city on the Red Sea coast designed to become a major global logistics hub by 2030.
The name's origin is debated among scholars:
Real-time ship positions in the Red Sea.
Data provided by VesselFinder AIS tracking system