As US-Iran war chokes Hormuz, can Central Asia’s ‘Middle Corridor’ rise to the rescue?

Name: Iran releases video of 2 container ships seized in the Strait of Hormuz
Uploaded: 2026-04-23T12:30:29.000Z
Description: Iran releases video of 2 container ships seized in the Strait of Hormuz

Logistics route via Central Asia, South Caucasus, Caspian Sea and Turkey said to be ‘experiencing massive operational momentum’

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With global medical supply chains proving fragile, the Middle Corridor is being held up as a potential vital route for rapid humanitarian aid. Photo: Future Publishing via Getty Images

Meredith Chen

Published: 8:30pm, 23 Apr 2026

As the US-Israeli war with Iran chokes off shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the “Middle Corridor” is being held up as a critical alternative lifeline linking East Asia to Europe.

Also known as the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, the Middle Corridor is a multimodal logistics route that connects China and Europe via Kazakhstan in Central Asia, Azerbaijan and Georgia in the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea and Turkey.

Waqar Ahmad, president of Kazakhstan’s Nazarbayev University, one of Central Asia’s leading research institutions, said the route’s momentum was being driven by the urgent need for alternatives as traditional maritime paths were disrupted by the Iran conflict.

“The Middle Corridor … is experiencing massive operational momentum,” Ahmad said at a meeting hosted by Hong Kong-based charity GX Foundation on Thursday, citing shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most vital trade and energy chokepoint.

Iran releases video of 2 container ships seized in the Strait of Hormuz

The in-person event in Hong Kong was themed on health collaboration among countries in the Beijing-led Belt and Road Initiative.

Ahmad highlighted the potential for medical and humanitarian uses of the Middle Corridor, which is widely seen as tracing the paths of the ancient Silk Road.

As US-Iran war chokes Hormuz, can Central Asia’s ‘Middle Corridor’ rise to the rescue?

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Logistics route via Central Asia, South Caucasus, Caspian Sea and Turkey said to be ‘experiencing massive operational momentum’

Logistics route via Central Asia, South Caucasus, Caspian Sea and Turkey said to be ‘experiencing massive operational momentum’