As the US withdraws from its position as global protector of the seas, will the age of pirates return once more? Okay, maybe Blackbeard won’t be making a comeback, but piracy will have a role in the future of trade.
Countries are likely to fall into one of two camps: combating piracy or embracing it. And it will largely depend on self-sufficiency. Places that need a little outside maritime help (especially for energy imports), like France, Italy, Japan, and Southeast Asian nations, will oppose piracy and protect shipping routes.
For places like Turkey, where trade happens over land, and they are largely self-reliant, more aggressive policies like protection rackets might become the norm. We could even see a bloc between Turkey, Israel, and Egypt form, leveraging the different strengths of each nation.
And of course, there will be some exceptions. A country like India might oppose piracy to its west but tolerate it to the east.
The decline of global maritime stability will lead to the regionalization of control, with different powers making the rules in each route. And if there was a place to watch, keep an eye on critical energy routes in and around the Persian Gulf.