News, Articles and Comment

Ed. In a fascinating investigation of the real maritime capacities of Russia and NATO in the Baltic, the author concludes that the ascension of Finland and Sweden into NATO gives the Allies a crushing preponderance in those waters. Winner of the Eric Grove prize for BRNC Dartmouth. A 25 minute read

Ed. With a laudable desire for linguistic clarity worthy of David Watkin Waters, Dr Mark Barton considers the language barrier impacting the cultivation of Joint and Service-wide consensus of concept meaning in operational planning. A 10 minute read.

Ed. The author suggests an expanded international role for the RN’s subsurface surveillance capability, particularly with regard to building capacity to deter PLAN hybrid operations against Taiwan’s communications network. A 10 minute read.

Ed. The Indo-Pacific theatre presents new challenges for the RN that recent UK strategic reviews may have optimistically underestimated. The authors contend that future RN involvement will have to rely on a combination of deterrence and cultivating alliances. A 5 minute read.

Ed. Defence engagement is a vital component of any influence and deterrence strategy. But how well is defence engagement situated in the defence review and service doctrine literature? The author argues more can be done to explicitly define defence engagement as a core RN role. A 20 minute read.

Ed. Reflections on the current state of the UK’s strategic positioning amidst the background of an increasingly dangerous and unpredictable world. The author posits that the reality of medium power status means fundamentally reassessing the often ideologically driven assumptions that have brought the UK and the Royal Navy to this moment in history. A 40 minute read.

Ed. The author reflects on the eternal question of the NR’s membership demographics, and its future as a platform for cultivating thought and discourse in the Royal Navy. Perhaps ironically, despite the immense technological transformations that have ensued, the fundamentals today seem to reflect the situation at the NR’s foundation, over a century ago. A 10 minute read.

Ed. Nearly a year ago, General Sir Robert Fry recognized the profound geopolitical implications of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In light of the failures of the Global War on Terrorism, serious threats have emerged to the international order. A 10 minute read. Originally published 21 March 2022 in The Article (https://www.thearticle.com/war-no-longer-politics-by-other-means-clausewitz-fukuyama-and-ukraine)

Ed. In the Ukraine conflict both sides have a tendency to favour the optimistic appraisals of their own information echo chambers, a dangerous way to form strategy. The author compares Germany’s 1918 Spring Offensive with expected forthcoming Russian offensive operations and raises questions about Western strategy and goals. Originally published in The Article, 24 February 2023 (https://www.thearticle.com/ukraine-one-year-on-some-random-observations). A 5 minute read.