Abstract
This paper examines threats to maritime supply chain for oil transports from Persian gulf to European Union with special regard to the Gulf of Aden and current piracy and maritime terrorism issue. The share of Middle East oil imports is about 20 percent of all imports.
Yet the Middle East remains an important supply. Transportation of oil from the Persian Gulf to the European Union is from 90 percent dependent of the sea lines, where its route must overcome some critical points of sea transport: the Strait of Hormuz, the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb and the Suez Canal, so called choke points.
In particular, the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb emerged in the last decade as an area of a high risk of piracy. Gulf of Aden plagued with maritime piracy has a negative impact on the transport of oil.
Disruption of maritime transport in Gulf of Aden, route for most oil supplies flowing from the Middle East to Europe and their disruption can entail an increase imports from other regions of the world.