Indian Navy – India and Indonesia begin joint patrols of the Andaman Sea to fight piracy.

• The Hindu: India, Indonesia begin joint patrolling
• Jakarta Post: India, RI begin joint naval patrols

Phillipine Navy – Two Phillipine patrol aircraft overflying the Spratly Islands were fired on by Vietnamese forces.

• Business World: Vietnamese forces fire at PAF planes patrolling Spratlys
  

Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force – Japan is shadowing another mystery ship – possibly a North Korean spy ship – off its coast.

• Reuters: Japanese coastguard shadows mystery ship

Military Sealift Command – More US arms are being prepositioned in the Middle East.

• Reuters: Pentagon: Tanks Heading to Gulf for Exercises

US Navy – The Trident-class ballistic missile submarines are being steadily modernized.

• Sea Power: Trident II D5 Backfits

Background – War on Terrorism – An interview with Secretary of Defense Rumsfield on the next steps in the war on terrorism.

• New York Times: Rumsfeld’s Search for a Way to Fight a New Type of Foe

US Navy – The captain of the USS Kitty Hawk has been relieved of his command.

• BBC: US carrier captain sacked in Japan
• Associated Press: Carrier’s skipper relieved, transferred to San Diego

Royal Navy – HMS Ark Royal is deploying with Merlin helicopters.

• The Times: Families fearing war bid Ark Royal sailors farewell

US Navy – A critical look by James Dunnigan on the number of nuclear attack submarines in the US Navy.

• StrategyPage: Lost at Sea

Background – War on Terrorism – William Arkin reflects on what the US has accomplished since 9/11/01.

• Washington Post Dot Mil: War Grows Up

Royal Navy – The current disposition of the Royal Navy as HMS Ark Royal sets sail for exercises in the Mediterranean.

• The Times: British military awaits clarion call
  

US Coast Guard – Aboard the patrol craft USS Typhoon, an illustration of how the Coast Guard is fighting terrorism at sea.

• Associated Press: Terrorism fight hits the high seas
  

US Navy – How network-centric warfare can be conducted under the sea.

• Sea Power: Transforming the Undersea Battlespace.

Background – Pakistan – Arnaud de Borchgrave on why Pakistan is the new Afghanistan, and how Pakistan is still at great risk of descending into chaos.

• Washington Times: The new Afghanistan

Background – Iraq – Thomas Friedman on what will be needed to rebuild Iraq.

• New York Times: Remaking Iraq looks like a tall order

Taiwanese Navy – Taiwan is developing its own antiship cruise missiles.

• Associated Press: Taiwan developing cruise missiles says report
  

US Navy – The US is not building a shipyard in Indonesia after all???

• The Strait Times: US plan for naval dock in Sulawesi dismissed

US Navy – The USS Wasp amphibious ready group has returned from the Gulf.

• Virginian Pilot: Wasp group returns home from war duty
  

US Coast Guard – In the Arctic aboard the icebreak Healy.

• Associated Press: Arctic mission measures signs of climate change
  

• USA Today: Scientists struggle to learn Arctic Ocean’s Secrets

Background – Iraq – William Arkin on how “effects based” targeting may be used against Iraq to topple Saddam, in a similar way to how it was used in Yugoslavia to topple Milosevic.

• Los Angeles Times: Mapping the Minds in Iraq’s Regime
  

US Navy – The US is building a naval dockyard and repair facilty in Bitung, Indonesia.

• Jakarta Post: U.S. to build naval docking facility in Bitung
  

Background – The Nation State – A review of four books that evaluate whether the nation state is in decline, and the implications for naval forces.

• Naval War College Review: Is this the end of the nation state?

Indian Navy – Another Indian Kilo-class submarine is being overhauled in Russia.

• The Hindu: Indian submarine in Arctic shipyard for repairs

US Navy – The Office of Naval Research is heading up the
Autonomous Intelligent Network and Systems (AINS), a program that aims to create
an operational drone army by the year 2020.

• Wired:
  The Drone Armies Are Coming

US Navy – What are the signs that the US is preparing to move against Iraq?

• Financial Times: Long war build-up is more about politics than logistics

US Coast Guard – Deepwater will bring the Coast Guard into the present, technologically.

• TechTV: ‘Deepwater’ Launches Tech Upgrade for Coast Guard

US Marines – Some Afghanistan lessons learned from the Marines.

• Associated Press: Marine Generals Assess Performance

Russian Navy – More details about the Kurk’s sinking emerge from inside Russia.

• Washington Post: Report Shows Sloppiness May Be to Blame in Kursk Accident
• Moscow Times: Kursk Probe Shows Navy’s Negligence

US Navy – Why leadership still matters???

• US Naval Institute Proceedings: Leadership is More Valuable Than Technology

Israeli Navy – Israel is using its navy to try to stop smuggling into the Gaza Strip by sea.

• CNN: Palestinian police take over Gaza checkpoints
  

Taiwanese Marines – With Taiwan’s marines on exercises.

• Taipei Times: Media get to see Marines in action

US Coast Guard – The Coast Guard prepares to modernize its maritime distress and response system.

• Sea Power: A Continuing Role as America’s Livesaver

US Navy – Every US submarine is being equipped with a videogame console, courtesy of a videogame trade association.

• Reuters: U.S. Submariners Go from War Games to Video Games

US Marine Corps – How command and control networks are being transformed to command, control, communications and computer networks.

• Marine Corps Gazette: Transforming Marine Corps C4

US Navy – An indepth look at the new MH-60 helicopter and what it can do.

• Virginian Pilot: MH-60: The ”Ferrari” of helos
  

Russian Navy – President Putin vows to improve Russia’s navy.

• Associated Press: Navy Conditions Concerns Russia

US Coast Guard – Drug running go-fast boats are “grapes” for USCG’s new helicopter squadron.

• Sea Power: Coast Guard HITRON

Chinese Navy – A review and synthesis of several recent books about the Chinese Navy that cover its past and its possible future – and how the two are deeply intertwined.

• Naval War College Review: China’s New Imperial Navy

Pakistani Navy – Pakistan launched its Agosta 90B submarine, and announced it will build four F-22 Chinese frigates with assistance from China.

• The Hindu: Pak. to build 4 warships with Chinese assistance
• Pakistan News Service: Pakistan launched indigenously made submarine

Singapore Navy – Singapore’s second submarine is operational.

• The Straits Times: Second submarine up and running

Indonesia Navy – Indonesia is conducting its first naval exercises since 1996.

• Jakarta Post: Megawati hopes Navy remains positive despite old equipment

Background – Aircraft Carriers – Why the aircraft carrier is still important.

• The Straits Times: Aircraft carrier still master of the sea

US Navy – The CH-46 Sea Knight fleet is flying again after a temporary grounding.

• Associated Press: Sea Knight Fleet Resumes Flying

US Navy – The USS Abraham Lincoln makes a port call in Hong Kong.

• The Hindu: US aircraft carrier to visit Hong Kong

History – Battle of Savo Island – A look at one of the US Navy’s worst defeats, from an officer who was there.

• Naval History: Savo Island – the Worst Defeat

US Navy – The US says Exercise Millennium Challenge *was* an extremely useful exercise.

• Virginian Pilot: Controversial war game improved warriors

Background – Iran – An excellent essay by Robert Kaplan on what one possible lawless future for Iran may look like.

• The Atlantic: A Bazaari’s World

US Marines – The Marines are learning just how hard urban combat can be in realistic training scenarios.

• Wall Street Journal: Marines learn urban combat

US Marines – The Commandant of the Marine Corps on lessons learned from Afghanistan.

• Washington Times: Afghanistan lessons don’t apply to Iraq, general says

NAVINT – Anthony Preston’s miscellaneous naval news from the UK, Australia, Chile, France, Sri Lanka, and Japan.

• Sea Power: United States Shows Interest in Swiss 35mm Gun Mount

Russian Navy – What did Russia’s recent naval wargames in the Caspian Sea actually achieve?

• Radio Free Europe: Caspian: Results Of Russian War Games Still A Mystery

Background – Wargaming – The Pentagon answers the acusations that Millenium Challenge 02 was fixed.

• Virginian Pilot: Pentagon leaders defend war game

Background – Wargaming – How the US military is utilizing computer-based wargaming more and more.

• ABC: A Play for Better Soldier

Background – Iraq – James F. Dunnigan nicely summarizes the reasons for and against invading Iraq.

• StrategyPage: Invading Iraq For All The Wrong Reasons

Background – Russia – Does Russia really know what it is doing in arming China?

• Moscow Times: Arming China Makes U.S. Nervous
  

US Navy – How the US Navy hospital ships Comfort and Mercy could be better utilized.

• US Naval Institute Proceedings: Counter the Violence with Comfort and Mercy

Indian Navy – An Indian task force is making a port call in Singapore.

• The Straits Times: Three Indian navy ships here on visit

US Navy – The cockpit design of the Joint Strike Fighter is being fine-tuned.

• Aviation Week: F-35 Cockpit Targets Information Integration

US Coast Guard – The new Coast Guard commandant focuses on Readiness, People, Stewardship.

• Sea Power: Charting a New Course for the 21st Century

Background – Alliances – David Isby on why the alliances are key to the US’s success in the war on terrorism, and why we must do more to form them and aid them.

• Washington Times: Brothers in Arms

Royal Navy – The UK is coming close to deciding on what type of aircraft carrier they would like to build and what type of aircraft they would like to fly from it.

• Jane’s: Carrier Countdown

US Marine Corps – The crucial role that intelligence played in establishing and operating Camp Rhino inside Afghanistan.

• Marine Corps Gazette: A New Operating Environment

Royal Australian Navy – Australia has commissioned its fourth Anzac-class frigate.

• Australian Associated Press: Latest warship commissioned

Canadian Navy – The frigate HMCS Ottawa returns home after 6 months in the Arabian Sea.

• CBC: Frigate returns home from war on terrorism
  

US Coast Guard – Coast Guard Maritime Safety and Security Teams gear up for homeland-security mission.

• Sea Power: The Goal-Line Defense Paradigm

Background – Nation-Building – A fascinating look at how US Special Forces are conducting nation-building inside Afghanistan. An interesting quote from Afghanis: “Only America puts its peacekeepers in the sky???”

• New York Times Magazine: Nation-Building Lite

Royal Marines – A review of 45 Commando’s deployment to Afghanistan.

• Jane’s: Reviewing the UK Afghan deployment

Background – UK – Why the British military has concerns about attacking Iraq.

• The Economist: Windy Soldiers

Background – Wargaming – More by William Arkin on what exactly Millenium Challenge was supposed to be simulating.

• Washington Post: Iraq or Iran?
  Clarifying the Geography and Politics of the Pentagon’s War Game

Background – Wargaming – Was Millenium Challenge 02 rigged?

• Virginian Pilot: War game was rigged, ”enemy” commander charges

Indian Navy – An excellent review of the history and current operations of the Indian Navy.

• Naval War College Review: The Indian End of the Telescope

US Navy – The USS Abraham Lincoln makes a port call in Japan, an unusual event for a nuclear-powered carrier.

• Ashai Shimbum: Nuke-powered carrier calls on Sasebo

Taiwanese Navy – Taiwan will spend 50% of its defense budget in the future on upgrading its navy with Kidd-class destroyers, submarines, P-3 Orions and MH-53 helicopters.

• Taipei Times: Navy pushed to the front lines of defense spending
  

Royal Navy – The Astute submarine program has fallen 18 months behind schedule.

• Jane’s: Astute submarine program hit by design delays

US Navy – How the Chief of Naval Operations is turning the US Navy around.

• Virginian Pilot: At the top, still learning

US Coast Guard – The reinforced importance of port security to the US Coast Guard.

• Sea Power: Port Security–A Mission Renewed

Pakistani Navy – Pakistan is interested in exporting Agosta-class submarines, now that it has learned how to build them.

• BBC: Pakistan ready to build submarines

US Navy – What the US Navy of 2020 could look like???according to participants at a conference sponsored by the Office for Naval Research.

• UPI: Navy 2020: Lasers, maglev, agile vaccines
  

US Navy – The Military Sealift Command is chartering sealift to take arms to the Middle East.

• Reuters: U.S. Navy Retracts Denial of Arms Shipment to Gulf

Royal Navy – The cargo ship hijacked off Somali is now said to be North Korean, rather than British.

• Agence France-Presse: Pirates seek $1.8m for ship, crew

Background – Iran – An excellent essay by a Naval War College professor, with many insights into the current state of Iran and Iranians after a visit there in 2001.

• Naval War College Review: Letter From Iran

US Marine Corps – Miscellaneous aviation notes, including how Marine Corp and Navy air may be integrated.

• Sea Power: Osprey Program Restructured

US Navy – More on the recently completed wargame Millenium Challenge 2002.

• Boston Globe: US takes new tack in war games

Background – Iran – An overview of the current situation in Iran and why the future of Iran is crucial to peace in the Middle East and to success in the war on terrorism.

• The Atlantic: Iran on the Brink

US Marines – The Marines are looking to replace the M16A2 assault rifle.

• San Diego Union Tribune: Marines set sights on new basic rifle

US Navy – The US came very close to losing the submarine USS Dolphin.

• San Diego Union Tribune: Report: Sub came close to sinking
  

US Navy – The USS John F Kennedy will soon be home.

• Associated Press: USS Kennedy Battle Group Returning
  

US Navy – More on the new rules of engagement the US Navy is seeking for boarding ships at sea.

• Associated Press: US may seek power to stop ships abroad

US Navy – Aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

• Sea Power: The Real Thing

Royal Navy – HMS Cumberland is searching off of Somalia for a British-flagged tanker which has been said to have been hijacked.

• BBC: Royal Navy search for ‘hijacked ship’
  

US Marine Corps – Where and how expeditionary warfare is taught to Marines.

• Marine Corps Gazette: Expeditionary Warfare School: The Schoolhouse for Expeditionary Maneuver Warfare