New Delhi, Aug. 17 -- India should treat maritime insecurity as a persistent risk to international trade and strengthen domestic shipping capacity, trade finance, naval protection and alternative transport corridors, Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said on Sunday.

The economics think tank noted that the Red Sea shipping crisis completed 1,000 days on August 15 without a durable resolution, highlighting the prolonged impact of disruptions on global trade.

The crisis has slowed and increased the cost of trade between India and Europe, the UK, North Africa and the US East Coast, raising freight, insurance and working-capital costs for MSME exporters, it added.

GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said, "As shipping chokepoints are growing...