News, Articles and Comment

Ed. The vast population of this ‘sceptred isle’ is ‘sea blind’ or, if you prefer, ‘maritime illiterate’. We should acknowledge this as the steady state and the only thing that could change one’s appreciation would be total war.

Ed. This article explores some of the undiscussed issues and challenges facing the introduction of large-scale autonomous vessels under the ‘hybrid navy’ plan. The aim of this article is not to nay say and stick one’s head in the sand, but rather to identify the very real challenges facing implementation, their limits, and the importance of maintaining capable crewed warships to restore the RN fleet as a capable naval force. A 20 minute read.

Ed. Two letters reflecting on cultural and doctrinal transformation in the NATO naval realm.

Ed. The author, with an appreciation for maritime globalisation and the nature of seapowers, argues for greater resilience and redundancy in the UK’s industry and shipbuilding networks, and recognition of the maritime sector’s vital national security role. A 5 minute read.

Ed. By the time you read this in the hardcopy, the NATO Summit in Ankara will have taken place. However, this article by the Naval Review’s Chairman gives a clear indication, and a warning, of the general direction in which the United States wishes to steer the Alliance. A 15 minute read.

Ed. The author, looking beyond the United States Navy, provides a survey of NATO’s current ambitious shipbuilding projects. Originally published in the USNI’s Proceedings, May 2026. A 15 minute read.

Ed. With his trademark dissident perspective, the author tackles what he describes as the long-term decline of European and British maritime power, and compares the present situation in the Middle East with the financial consequences of the outbreak of war in 1914. A 15 minute read.

Ed. If the recent conflict in the Middle East has confirmed anything, it is that sea power remains essential to our nation’s prosperity. Much has been written about Operation EPIC FURY, the rapidly evolving threats we face and our ability to counter them, and how advances in drones, uncrewed and autonomous systems have forever changed the way we fight. But some things remain constant, as evidenced by Iran shutting the Strait of Hormuz, the vital maritime chokepoint through which a fifth of the world’s oil transits.

Ed. The expert authors address the practical side of port infrastructure dual use from the perspective of the Associated British Ports (ABP), providing recommendations for enhanced integration. A 15 minute read.