As of now, the Strait of Malacca is still the primary maritime highway connecting Europe, the Middle East, and Africa to East Asia. Singapore and southern Malaysia have long built their economies around their strategic positions at the mouth of the Strait of Malacca. With the KLB, trade may shift from traditional maritime states to continental Indochina and disrupt this monopoly by offering a northern alternative. For the United States, the ability to secure or restrict access to the Strait of Malacca has long been a foundational component of Western maritime strategy in Asia. While a long-standing US treaty ally, Thailand is, after all, a sovereign nation whose transit zone is governed by terrestrial law rather than international maritime transit rights.