France) Waterbodies connecting the Pacific and Atlantic oceans including: Strait of Magellan (Chile) Beagle Channel (Chile and Argentina) Drake Passage The Cape of Good Hope (South Africa) Bering Strait (United States of America and Russia) Bosporus Strait linking the Black Sea (and oil coming from the Caspian Sea region) to the Mediterranean Sea (Turkey) Dardanelles Strait connecting the Sea of Marmara with the Aegean Sea (Turkey) Strait of Tartary along Sea of Japan and Sea of Okhotsk (Russia) The Fulda Gap was seen as one of the potentially decisive bottleneck battlegrounds of the Cold War in Germany. Royal Navy choke points From the 18th to the early 20th centuries, the sheer size of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy meant it had control over much of the world's oceans and seas. Choke points were of huge importance to the British Empire, which often used them to control trade in British colonies and, to a lesser extent, for defense. Choke points have also been a source of tension, notably during the Suez Crisis. The Royal Navy still deems its choke points as strategically vital. Indeed, the importance of choke points was first recognised by British Admiral John Fisher. These are major British choke points today: The English Channel GIUK gap (between Greenland, Iceland, and UK) Strait of Gibraltar The choke points still have significant strategic importance for the Royal Navy. The GIUK gap is particularly important to the Royal Navy, as any attempt by northern European forces to break into the open Atlantic would have to do so through the heavily defended English Channel, which is also the world's busiest shipping lane, or through one of the exits on either side of Iceland. Considering British control over the strategic fortress of Gibraltar at the entrance to the Mediterranean, Spain (northern coast), France (Atlantic coast) and Portugal are the only mainland European nations that have direct access to the Atlantic Ocean in a way that cannot be easily blocked at a choke point by the Royal Navy. The GIUK gap was also a strategically important part of the Cold War, as the Royal Navy were given the responsibility of keeping an eye on Soviet submarines trying to break into the open Atlantic. Importance Choke points remain a prominent issue today in the global economy and shipments of goods, particularly oil: 20% of the world's oil is shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. In