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Last week, a Thai cargo ship ran aground near Iran’s Qeshm Island, two weeks after Iranian forces bombed the vessel as it tried to cross the Strait of Hormuz. Twenty sailors were rescued on the day of the attack as the Mayuree Naree drifted through an active war zone with a damaged engine, but three people remain unaccounted for.

The sailors were among many Southeast Asians caught up—in this case, literally—in the current Middle East conflict as it threatens to destabilize fuel supplies and derail economies. Around 20 percent of the world’s oil and natural gas transits the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has declared that no ships can transit the strait without its approval, aiming to jolt the global economy in retaliation for ongoing U.S. and Israeli attacks.

Last week, a Thai cargo ship ran aground near Iran’s Qeshm Island, two weeks after Iranian forces bombed the vessel as it tried to cross the Strait of Hormuz. Twenty sailors were rescued on the day of the attack as the Mayuree Naree drifted through an active war zone with a damaged engine, but three people remain unaccounted for.

The sailors were among many Southeast Asians caught up—in this case, literally—in the current Middle East conflict as it threatens to destabilize fuel supplies and derail economies. Around 20 percent of the world’s oil and natural gas transits the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has declared that no ships can transit the strait without its approval, aiming to jolt the global economy in retaliation for ongoing U.S. and Israeli attacks.

The squeeze on energy supplies has acutely affected Southeast Asia—but it is particularly felt in Myanmar, where the military overthrew the elected civilian government in 2021 and plunged the country into a yearslong crisis. The coup sparked an armed rebellion and economic collapse, but the military regime has in recent months seemed to be on a path to stabilizing the situation, with support from China. The fuel shortage now threatens that equilibrium, raising the prospect of further economic upheaval and unrest.

In Yangon, Myanmar’s commercial capital, sources said that the price of a taxi had nearly doubled since Feb. 28, when the Iran war began. The military regime said in mid-March that it only had 40 days of fuel reserves remaining, and it has implemented a rule to limit traffic, where vehicles with license........

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