Thailand looks to cut Malacca Strait shipping time by land link between Indian_ Pacific Oceans

Thailand is looking to construct a land passageway that would connect the Indian and Pacific Oceans_ bypassing one of the world s busiest shipping lanes. The Strait of Malacca_ a narrow sea lane along Peninsular Malaysia  s southwest coast and extending east past Singapore _ is currently the shortest sea route linking the Asia-Pacific region with India and the Middle East. About a quarter of the world s traded goods pass through it each year. Minister of Transport of Thailand Saksiam Chidchob said_ Thailand plans to build two deep seaports on either side of the country s southern coasts_ and link them via highway and rail. The 100km land bridge would replace an existing proposal to dredge a canal through the isthmus. That would cause too much destruction to the environment_ he said. The idea for a canal that would traverse the nation s narrowest point and trim the travel distance by 1_200km (745 miles) has been put forward and dismissed several times over the past few decades. The government has approved a 75 million baht (US$2.4 million) budget for a study to examine the construction of two seaports_ and another 90 million baht to examine highways and rails linking them_ according to Saksiam. Last year_ a report found that piracy surged along the Strait of Malacca. Data from ReCAAP ISC_ a piracy information group with 20 member nations_ mostly in Asia_ found that incidents along the shipping route rose from eight in 2018 to 30 last year. source- South China Morning Post