News, Articles and Comment

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers the third book in Osprey’s new Fleet series, exploring the role of the British Pacific Fleet in the defeat of Japan in latter part of the Second World War.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers an important and timely edited volume examining the role of naval power in the Indo-Pacific.

Ed. This article, drawing on German-language sources, presents a fresh biographical sketch of Maximilian von Spee’s naval career, a man of his time who realistically embodied German sea power, in the Mahanian tradition, until his demise at the Falkland Islands on 8 December 1914. A 20 minute read.

Ed. Our correspondent considers some of the formidable challenges the PLAN would need to overcome to make an amphibious invasion of Taiwan a realistic proposition, and the long-term hybrid warfare alternatives to which the PRC may turn. A 10 minute read.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers two books examining Admiral Nimitz’ performance as commander of the US Navy’s Pacific Fleet in the Second World War.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. It considers two books from Osprey, providing accounts of the Japanese A6M2/3 Zero and US Navy F6F Hellcat in the South Pacific and Philippines in the Second World War respectively.

Ed. Contrary to doom and gloom predictions of NATO decline under a potential second Trump Presidency, Rob Fry argues that, with US strategic imperatives invariably prioritizing the Pacific theatre, it is high time European leaders demonstrate resolve. Originally published in The Article. A 10 minute read.

BRE. The latest book review is now available. Professor Geoffrey Till considers a book examining the development of fire support  for amphibious operations in the Pacific campaign of the Second World War.

Ed. A perennial problem is how does Defence encourage originality and innovation? Thinking outside of the box must be an essential prerequisite to success in the 21st century – to accommodate and exploit the explosion in computing capability and the advent of AI. The author explains how the UK predicts and prepares for future conflict, the flaws in this method, and proposes how studying Science Fiction literature could offer military leaders a beneficial fighting edge in a future conflict. A 15 minute read.