CIMSEC – Criminals will always seek illicit profit with the highest reward and the lowest risk. Maritime commodities have become increasingly popular on account of their relative invisibility. Eels may be the Caribbean’s “flavor of the month,” but something else will come to take their place in the future. That means that the region – replete with sophisticated criminal organizations – needs to build collective resilience against this phenomenon by working together. First, to make invisible criminal commodities visible, and thereafter, to make the risk of getting caught outweigh the potential rewards of the crime.
CMSI Translations #24: Accelerating the Development of (PLAN) Marine Corps Combat Capabilities to Win in High End Maritime Warfare
China Maritime Studies Institute – At present and for a period into the future, numerous security concerns and threats will persist along China’s periphery, in the far seas, and overseas. [China’s] national security threats are primarily at sea, the focal point of military struggle is at sea, and the center of gravity for the expansion of [China’s] national interest is also at sea.3 As the elite amphibious combat force, the PLAN Marine Corps finds its primary theaters of operations in oceans, on islands, and overseas. It must closely monitor maritime and overseas security developments, accurately assess security threats, coordinate maritime and overseas operations, clearly identify military requirements, accelerate transformation and development, and continuously enhance combat capabilities. This will enable it to play a critical role participating in global maritime governance and winning high-end maritime conflict.
Russian spy ship enters British waters and shines lasers at military pilots
The Guardian – A Russian spy ship has entered British waters and shone lasers at military pilots, the defence secretary has said, as he warned the UK was facing a “new era of threat” from hostile countries.
Royal Navy’s future Large Uncrewed Surface Vessels and the datalink challenge
Navy Lookout – As the RN goes ahead with plans for hybrid fleet USVs, this reignited debate about the role, control and configuration of such platforms in the future fleet. In this guest article, Jed considers how vessels of this type could be employed, the datalink architecture and whether lean crewing may ultimately be preferable to full autonomy.
Peace in Gaza May Not Mean Peace in the Red Sea
CIMSEC – While Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and adjoining waterways may wax and wane in the coming months, safe transit through the Red Sea is unlikely to become a reality in the foreseeable future. The Houthis’ Red Sea campaign is not intrinsically linked to the Gaza conflict and may therefore continue even if that war ends peacefully. The Houthis will likely continue to use these attacks as a leverage point to press for more favorable final-status peace negotiations with both Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s internationally recognized government to help secure them a more advantageous political position in Yemen moving forward. Only an end to the decades-long conflict between the Houthis and their enemies within Yemen will bring an end to the group’s efforts to disrupt maritime commerce in the region.
Is China’s Defense Industry Actually Outcompeting the United States?
National Interest – The People’s Liberation Army Navy might not actually be able to beat the US Navy in the Indo-Pacific. But if it looks like it can, China will reap strategic benefits.
Ready For War: A Way Forward For Industrial Preparedness
CIMSEC – The U.S. defense industrial base has limited capacity to rapidly increase production in the event of large-scale conflict against a peer competitor, and global commitments further widen these gaps.
SubSea Craft – British innovation for maritime special forces
Navy Lookout – As the Royal Marines transition to the Commando Force model, raiding and special forces operations are increasingly important. Here we look at SubSea Craft, a UK-based specialist manufacturer developing products for operators within the special forces and commando community to translate urgent requirements into deployable systems.
Bring Out the Knives: A Programmatic Night Court For the Surface Navy
CIMSEC – The leaders of the surface force must launch an effort to systematically protect time for tactics by aggressively pruning other requirements, or else these new efforts will fall short.
How South Korea Can Help the U.S. Navy Stay Afloat in the Pacific
War on the Rocks – Can America deter China if its warships are stuck in port? Probably not. And the problem is made worse by chronic shipbuilding delays. This means the U.S. Navy is forced to rely more heavily on its legacy fleet, which requires more maintenance. And neither the Navy’s domestic shipyards nor its overseas facilities can meet current demand. Without immediate action, the Navy risks missing force design and operational readiness goals in critical regions like the Indo-Pacific.
Aware of the risk, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently announced plans to expand maintenance, repair, and overhaul activities in South Korean shipyards. From a purely economic point of view, South Korea has exactly what the United States lacks: the infrastructure, industrial capacity, and skilled labor to help sustain its navy’s ships. But more than that, partnering with South Korea makes good strategic sense, strengthening a key alliance that offers forward support for operations in the Western Pacific.
How Can America Respond to Russia’s New Submarine Detection Grid?
National Interest – Russia’s “Harmony” project is the latest salvo in the battle between underwater access and anti-access efforts. The United States will need new innovations of its own to fight back.
The role of Japan and the Philippines in resisting a Chinese blockade of Taiwan
Breaking Defense – Strategic geography, resupply corridors, and maritime access underscore Manila and Tokyo’s ability to assist Taiwan.
Russian military spy ship tracked by U.S. Coast Guard just 15 miles off Hawaii coast
CBS News – The U.S. Coast Guard said it detected and tracked a Russian military spy ship just miles off the coast of Hawaii, the latest incident of a Russian vessel or plane operating close to the U.S.
(Thanks to Alain)
With Sweden, Baltic Sea now a ‘lake full of NATO submarines’
Breaking Defense – Sweden’s entry into NATO has dramatically shifted the formerly non-military aligned nation’s naval doctrine: no longer just defending its own shores, the Swedish navy now guards the alliance’s eastern flank.
Portugal intercepts narco-submarine carrying 1.7 tonnes of cocaine en route to Iberian peninsula
EuroNews – Portuguese authorities intercepted a drug-carrying vessel in the Atlantic Ocean with 1.7 tonnes of cocaine destined for European markets. Four crew members were arrested.
(Thanks to Alain)
Iran confirms seizure of oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz
NBC News – Iran on Saturday confirmed seizure of a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker as it traveled through the narrow Strait of Hormuz over violations including carrying an illegal consignment, state media reported.
The French arming colossus Thales will bring to this “white elephant” and the only aircraft carrier in Southeast Asia the elements it lacked to be useful
Military Forum – The return of the king? Thailand is relaunching its aircraft carrier with the help of Thales.
(Thanks to Alain)
‘Greatest vulnerability’: Australian Navy chief says protecting undersea cables is ‘existential’
Breaking Defense – Experts warned there’s no single government agency in charge of monitoring, defending and repairing the cables, and no effective deterrent strategy.
Short-Term Solutions, Long-Term Problems—The U.S. Navy’s Approach to Mines during the Tanker War
US Naval War College Review – Mine warfare is a persistent threat to naval operations and ocean commerce, and yet it remains a persistent area of underinvestment by the U.S. Navy. The recent history of the Navy’s improvisational approach to emergent mine threats suggests how the Navy might succeed by “preparing to be unprepared” before it faces mines again.
Sunk costs – MoD accounts reveal cancelled Royal Navy projects
Navy Lookout – The MoD has published its annual report and accounts for 2024-25. Buried amongst its 250 pages are some details of RN programmes that have been axed or written off.
The Kamikaze Throughline—U.S. Fleet Air Defense from Imperial Japan to Drones
US Naval War College Review – Since World War II, fleet air defense has been organized around the principle of engaging threats as far out from the fleet as possible, motivated by early failures to engage the kamikaze threat. This approach remains as vital as ever and progressively more challenging in the face of the contemporary threats posed by cruise missiles and—increasingly—by drone warfare.
Australian navy sizes up high-risk submarine transitions under AUKUS
Defense News – Australia has its work cut out keeping aging Collins-class diesel-electric submarines in service as it transitions to nuclear-powered submarines, firstly to second-hand Virginia-class boats from the United States, and then to SSN-AUKUS submarines designed and built in conjunction with the U.K.
The Riparian Logic of the Montreux Convention in Turkey’s Black Sea Policy
US Naval War College Review – Turkey’s policies often appear at odds with its position in NATO and the broad direction of its allies. These polices become less mysterious when it is understood that Turkey’s strategic imperatives are driven by its unique position as gatekeeper to the Black Sea and the dynamics introduced by the tiered rights granted by the Montreaux Convention.
What it would take to build Trump’s Golden Fleet ‘battleships’
Breaking Defense – “The interesting part of this is it’s not just a kind of fleeting presidential idea, but this is, in fact, something that does kind of resonate with what the Navy’s finding it probably needs to do with the fleet through its own work,” one analyst said.
Russian Nuclear Submarine Technology Will Make North Korean Threat More Palpable
38North – South Korea and regional allies will need to up their submarine game to keep pace with the emerging threat of nuclear powered submarines in Pyongyang’s hands. The case has never been stronger for South Korea and Japan to adopt their own nuclear boats, and South Korea, in particular, has been trying to acquire the rights for .
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