Modern War Institute – The battle for twenty-first-century global supremacy will be decided across the volatile expanse of the Indo-Pacific. Characterized by vast oceans, dispersed island chains, and contested littorals, the rise of Chinese military power presents distinctive challenges to US military force projection and operational reach. Since World War II, American naval and air forces have typically led these maritime efforts on behalf of coalition teams. However, the changing operational environment—exemplified by recent area-denial campaigns in the Black Sea and the Persian Gulf—now present opportunities for land forces to counter adversary aggression in maritime settings with novel thinking and new approaches. The US Army, with emerging capabilities that promise to reimagine joint sea control, is now postured to enable revitalized strategic deterrence for the middle years of the twenty-first century.
Sinking Ships in the South China Sea
USNI News – Japan, the Philippines and the U.S. are redefining Western Pacific alliances during a missile-heavy Balikatan exercise.
Russian Nuclear Submarines, Thousands of Miles From Ukraine, Get Anti-Drone Defenses
Naval News – Despite being thousands of miles from the war in Ukraine, Russia’s strategic submarine base at Rybachiy in the Pacific is now showing signs of heightened defenses. New satellite imagery reveals anti-drone protections around nuclear submarines, suggesting Russian commanders fear that Ukrainian surprise attacks threaten even their most remote naval assets.
IRGC Navy Claims Vast Expansion In Its Definition Of Strait Of Hormuz
The War Zone – The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy claims it has greatly expanded how it defines the Strait of Hormuz, which it has closed to most shipping since the start of the now-paused war. Under its new definition, the IRGC claimed a tenfold expansion “forming a complete crescent” of “about 20 to 30 miles to one now over 200 to 300 miles.”
Lost in the Small Surface Combatant Wilderness
CIMSEC – The real challenge remains the development of the next-generation surface combatant—a ship with the size, power, and growth margin to accommodate future weapons and sensors. That search has eluded the Navy for decades. The Future Frigate is not that answer. Achieving it will require a clean-sheet design, sustained discipline, and a willingness to align ambition with technical reality. Until then, the frigate program represents not a destination, but a holding action.
The Missing Navies: The Hormuz Crisis and the Limits of America’s Indo-Pacific Partnerships
War on the Rocks – On May 4, 2026, a South Korean vessel came under fire in the Strait of Hormuz, leading President Donald Trump to urge the government in Seoul to join the U.S.-led operation to secure the waterway. The South Korean government politely replied it would “review” the American proposal. The event crystallized a major paradox of the ongoing conflict: The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the worst maritime crisis in decades, is fundamentally an Asian problem, yet Asia is almost entirely absent from the debate over how to resolve it.
Royal Navy USVs to be deployed for potential operational debut in Strait of Hormuz
Navy Lookout – The Ministry of Defence has confirmed the RN will send a new fleet of uncrewed surface vessels to the Gulf as part of a multinational force working to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The Kraken K3 Scout can sense, track and identify threats, possibly working alongside HMS Dragon, RFA Lyme Bay and other coalition assets in what will be the RN’s first acknowledged operational USV deployment.
The Aramid Shield: Snare Drones For an Active Undersea Defense Capability
CIMSEC – To achieve true security for underwater infrastructure, maritime operational posture must transition from passive detection to active non-lethal intervention.
The Other Border Problem: How Russia and China’s Lawfare Threaten the Arctic
War on the Rocks – What happens when the Arctic starts to look like the South China Sea?
New Navy Shipbuilding Plan: Trump-class Battleship will be Nuclear-powered, Carrier Design is Under Review
USNI News – The new Trump-class battleship will be powered by a nuclear reactor and is not a successor to the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers, the Navy revealed Monday in its annual 30-year shipbuilding blueprint.
Epic Fury has Navy rethinking carrier deployment tempo
Defense News – With the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford en route home from what has become the longest U.S. Navy float since Vietnam, the service is reconsidering how to sustain a wartime fighting force.
10-ship Russian Convoy Transits Japan’s Tsushima Strait
USNI News – A 10-ship Russian convoy transited Japan’s Tsushima Strait to enter the East China Sea over the weekend, according to Japan’s Joint Staff Office.
Anti-Drone “Cope Cage” Appears On Russian Patrol Boat
The War Zone – A recent development in the Black Sea drone war has seen a Russian Navy patrol boat appear with a screen, commonly known as a “cope cage,” on top of its superstructure to help protect against drones. Whether the modification is a one-off or part of a broader plan, it emphasizes the growing ubiquity of drone threats, a reality that the U.S. Navy is also increasingly having to contend with.
Have sea mines been laid in the Strait of Hormuz?
Navy Lookout – Despite repeated reports that Iran has mined the Strait of Hormuz, there is still no conclusive evidence that any mines have actually been laid. Nevertheless, the threat is being taken seriously by the RN and other naval powers because even the possibility of mining one of the w
UK may need foreign help to build Royal Navy submarine docks
Navy Lookout – Plans to expand the RN’s nuclear submarine docking capacity at Faslane could see major infrastructure built overseas, despite the strategic sensitivity of the programme. A report in The Sunday Times suggests questions remain over whether British yards still retain the expertise to construct large floating dry docks domestically as the MoD advances Programme EUSTON.
Italian Navy in the Pacific with MPCS Bande Nere to test ballistic missile defence
Naval News – On May 3, 2026, the Italian Navy ‘s fourth Thaon di Revel-class Multi-purpose Combat Ship, ITS Giovanni delle Bande Nere (P 434), departed Taranto Naval Base for Indo-Pacific region deployment.
The Kara Strait: Russia’s Hormuz trap for Europe
Council on Geostrategy – On 13th October 2025, the container vessel Istanbul Bridge pulled into Felixstowe, the United Kingdom’s (UK) principal container hub, loaded with nearly 5,000 containers of Chinese goods. On the face of it, the arrival would appear unremarkable; just one among thousands of ships arriving in British ports each year from the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Yet, the voyage marked a meaningful shift: rather than following traditional trade lanes, Istanbul Bridge had traversed the Northern Sea Route (NSR). Skirting the Arctic coast of Russia, this is an emerging corridor that promises to change global shipping and trade.
DANAE project: A fleet of Armed USV for the French Navy by 2027
Naval News – The DANAE (for Drone Autonome Naval avec de l’Armement Embarqué or Autonomous Naval Drone with Onboard Armament) project aims to rapidly equip the French Navy with armed Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV). In a first stage, the Marine Nationale expects these drone boats to conduct naval bases protection missions with non-lethal effectors. In a second and longer term stage, the USVs should be able to conduct escort and protection duties of military ships or high value units at sea, with onboard lethal weapons. The first systems from this “innovation acceleration project” are expected to be delivered at the end of 2027.
Russia planned major naval counteroffensive against Ukraine in 2026. Drones were built, but they can’t be used
EuroMaidan – Russia planned a major campaign in 2026 involving the use of naval drones. But these plans collapsed after SpaceX, at Kyiv’s request, blocked Russian access to Starlink satellite communications, says advisor to Ukraine’s Defense Minister Serhii “Flash” Beskrestnov.
The protraction trap: why a regional conflict could be hard to end
The Strategist – The most dangerous assumption in current contingency planning is that any war, even a regional war in Asia involving the United States, would be short. Four interacting forces would make high-intensity regional conflicts hard to terminate: regime legitimacy pressures, alliance dynamics, operational stalemate and nuclear escalation limits. Together they create a protraction trap. This means that strategies for deterrence should prioritise the ability to sustain and manage a conflict that lasts for many months, at least. The outcome of such a conflict may depend less on who wins the opening battle than on who has greater political, military and economic endurance. One side may seek rapid victory, but the US and its allies should plan to sustain the fight.
UK Re-deploys Destroyer Dragon to Middle East for Potential Hormuz Mission
Naval News – The UK is re-deploying its Type 45 air-defence destroyer HMS Dragon to the Middle East, to pre-position the ship in preparation for any potential multinational mission to secure Strait of Hormuz commercial shipping transits. Such a mission would be intended to take place when the current conflict in the Gulf region has concluded.
Could Russia Follow the “Hormuz Playbook” in the Baltic and Black Seas?
War on the Rocks – By effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has demonstrated that a chokepoint vital for global trade can be closed with drone attacks, insurance repricing, and the self-interested logic of shipping companies. The lesson for Europe is immediate: Russia could employ the same mechanism to close key maritime chokepoints at the Danish or Turkish Straits.
Mystery USV Possibly Linked to Ukraine Found by Greek Fishermen
Naval News – Greek fishermen discovered a suspected Ukrainian unmanned surface vessel (USV) hidden inside a sea cave off Lefkada island. The vessel was recovered by the Hellenic Coast Guard amid reports it may have carried explosives. Authorities are investigating its origin and possible links to recent maritime attacks in the Mediterranean.
India to build strategic outpost near key shipping lane in Indo-Pacific
Defense News – India is pressing ahead with a $9 billion infrastructure project to bolster its military footprint on the Great Nicobar Island which sits far from the Indian mainland near one of the world’s most critical shipping arteries.
US forces disable Iranian-flagged tankers trying to cross blockade
Defense News – American forces fired on and disabled two Iranian-flagged unladen oil tankers on Friday after the ships attempted to cross a U.S. Navy blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
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