Handout photo provided by U.S. Central Command shows U.S. forces patrolling the Arabian Sea near M/V Touska on April 20, 2026, after firing on the Iranian-flagged vessel accused of attempting to breach a U.S. naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz. Photo by the U.S. Navy via Getty Images Over coming months, we are likely to hear a lot more about the “freedom of the seas”, because Iran and America’s blockade of the Straits of Hormuz has made this the burning issue of our time. What is happening there now could just as easily happen in the Straits of Melaka, the key maritime artery linking the Bay of Bengal to the South China Sea, and it has already been happening on a smaller scale in the Bab el-Mandeb, at the entrance to the Red Sea, thanks to the efforts of the Houthis.…