Ornyenka-Sthulista Strait

The Ornyenka-Sthulista Strait is a stretch of water, at its thinnest, only about 27 km between the Gemurtrakian Borzh Kasu Peninsula in Osamia and the Sthulista Peninsula of Mitruhmoer in Eastern Skephon. It connects the Kunichi Sea, which feeds into the Locufaric Ocean, to the Osamian Ocean and is the only stretch of water to connect the Locufaric and Osamian ocean west of the Osamian continent. It is regarded as one of the most important stretches of water for international trade, alongside the strait of [Abayad], and the Kidal Sea, and was the only definitive route around the !Oldworld until the discovery of the Kidal Sea route.

Etymology
the name of the Ornyenka-Sthulista strait originates from two sources on either side of the strait. Ornyenka, literally meaning great mouth, originated from the Proto-Gemurtrakian Gadram Empire, and remained a popular term for most Osamian people following the confederation and Northern Imperial Period. Sthulista originates from the Mudruvese peninsula of the same name, which became a popular term of reference for most Skephonese travellers. Both seperate regions typically refer to the strait by a singluar name depending on their region of origin however the strait is legally referred to by both names. This combination of the name originates from the 19XX Osamian Strait Water Convention, a precursor to the Osamian Collective Convention of Maritime Law, a regional agreement over maritime function in Osamian and regional waters. The convention defined, and legally changed the name of, the strait to show and represent shared ownership between Mitruhmoer and Gemurtrak of the stretch of water. This definition was carried over to the OCCML alongside other agreements

Ownership
Until the Osamian Maritime Convention, the exact definition of the strait remained a dubiously defined region that varied based on the power projection of nearby nations. The waterway was vaugely split between the two nations on either side of the strait; Gemurtrak and Mitruhmoer, however where the influence of the other nation ended was a point of contention that had arisen on multiple occasions across the centuries. With the continued globablization of the world and the increase of importance in policing the strait for monetary and security purposes, the demand for strict definitions led to the Osamian Strait Water Convention of 19XX which led to a certified definition as well as specified sovereign nautical borders.

On the south, a line from [point in mitruhmoer] to Rkownatum on Nyiki swe and continues with another line from Swenazki to the eastern bank of the Tratum river

On the north, a line from [point in mitruhmoer] to Gemasunaykerr

Mudruvese territorial water is anything west of a line drawn from [location], Asidama, to [location] on the Shisphäl Archipelago. Gemurtrakian territorial waters is everything east of this line

Decades following the OSWC, relations between Mitruhmoer and Gemurtrak had grown exponentially, and the interest of jointly maintaining the waterway so as to avoid trade conflicts (such as the 19XX Gemurtrakian-Mudruvese trade war) and to make policing easier had garnered interest on both sides of the strait. The Osamian Collective Convention on Maritime Law formally defined the strait as a Free national waterway creating a jointly administrated zone overseen by OSSCA, an intergovernment organization headed by both Gemurtrakian and Mudruvese representatives. This would later be expanded to include other national representatives such as Asidama and Kwamplik after the formation and expansion of the Southern Prosperity League

Economic importance
While alternative routes have been discovered over the course of centuries, the Ornyenka-Sthulista strait is one of three global chokepoints in global shipping and remains the most important route of trade between Alutra and Abayadi sea nations to the western parts of the old world.