The Danish Straits, comprising the Øresund, Kattegat and Skagerrak, connect the Baltic Sea with the North Sea, forming the only maritime gateway for several northern European economies. At the narrowest point, the Øresund is just over two miles wide, making this a highly constrained and strategically sensitive passage.

Around 70,000 vessels transit the straits each year, including significant volumes of oil, gas and bulk cargo, with the route serving as a key outlet for energy exports from Russian ports.

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The shipping passages the global economy depends on