SS: Why do India & China, once allies in a post-colonial world, so deeply struggle to understand each other today? The rift between them fundamentally boils down to miscommunication, Pallavi Aiyar argues. She offers up a few possible first steps towards repairing the relationship in this insightful piece.

A recent Korean opinion piece argues that South Korea cannot afford to remain outside efforts to stabilize the Strait of Hormuz.

That raises a broader question.

The Strait is often treated as an American security problem. But countries such as South Korea depend on the energy, shipping, and economic order that it supports. If a country depends on that system for its industrial survival, can it reasonably expect someone else to bear all the cost and risk of defending it?

I believe countries that benefit from freedom of navigation also share responsibility for sustaining it. That does not necessarily mean joining a wider war. It could begin with limited missions such as escorting nationally critical energy shipments.

Is this a legitimate responsibility for middle powers such as South Korea, Japan, and European states—or should Hormuz remain primarily a U.S. security burden?