Us Navy News & Analysis

Washington Cannot Secure Hormuz by Ignoring Iran

U.S. Sailors aboard the guided missile destroyer USS William P. Lawrence (DDG 110) prepare to offer rescue assistance to a burning vessel March 11, 2013, during a transit in the Strait of Hormuz. The William P. Lawrence was deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility to promote maritime security operations, theater security cooperation efforts and support missions for Operation Enduring Freedom. - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sailors_aboard_the_guided-missile_destroyer_USS_William_P._Lawrence_(DDG_110)_prepare_to_offer_rescue_assistance_to_a_burning_vessel_during_a_transit_of_the_Strait_of_Hormuz_on_March_11,_2013_130311-N-ZQ631-124.jpg

US naval superiority can deter escalation, but it cannot deliver dependable passage through the Strait of Hormuz without a workable understanding of Iran's capabilities, incentives, and red lines.

The US Shipbuilding Industry Is Not Ready for a War

cc Jelson25, modified, An aerial view of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Bremerton, Washington (USA), on 24 November 2012. Visible are the following ships (top to bottom): aircraft carrier USS Independence (CV-62); USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63); USS Constellation (CV-64); amphibious transport dock ship USS Dubuque (LPD-8); USS Ranger (CV-61); three Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates; an (active) Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship; a Seawolf-class submarine. - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerial_Bremerton_Shipyard_November_2012.jpg

The US Navy is seeing ever more frequent and intensive engagements, but domestic shipbuilding bottlenecks impose hard limits on its operational reach.

Washington Risks Repeating Israel’s Strategic Mistake in the War of Attrition

Transferred from http://netanya.gal-ed.co.il/view_files/HeapItem_pic/007416/HP_007416_13.jpg; modified, https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%A7%D7%95%D7%91%D7%A5:War_of_Attrition._Haim_Granit.jpg

The risk faced by the United States in the Strait of Hormuz mirrors Israel’s War of Attrition against Egypt: What presents as a contained skirmish may actually be setting the stage for a future regional war.

China’s PLA Navy: A Peer Competitor Emerges

PLA Navy US Navy, Generated by ChatGPT on February 10, 2026. All flags, maps, and likenesses contained within this image are not necessarily accurate representations of reality.

Examining the force structure, doctrine, and capabilities of China’s PLA Navy after decades of modernization and rapid shipbuilding.

Setting a Precedent: US War on Drugs Reboots in Latin America

Ships from the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group (GRFCSG) and the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), and Hellenic Navy frigate HS Navarinon (F 461) sail in formation in the Mediterranean Sea, Dec. 31, 2023. The ships from the GRFCSG include the first-in-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile USS The Sullivans (DDG 68), USS Bulkeley (DDG 84), and USS Delbert D. Black (DDG 119). The ships from the Bataan ARG include the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5), the San Antonio Class-class amphibious transport dock USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19), Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50). The U.S. maintains forward deployed, ready, and postured forces to deter aggression and support security and stability around the world. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky)

It’s not the volume of Washington’s drug boat strikes that’s most important – it’s the precedent they set for future military action. This forecast examines the diplomatic, economic, and military risk factors inherent to President Trump’s militarized approach to counter-narcotics.

Breaking the Ice: Unpacking the US-Finland Icebreaker Deal

The heavy ice breaker USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) breaks ice approaching McMurdo Station, Antarctica. Joint Task Force-Support Forces Antarctica oversees the activities of the joint services and provides Department of Defense support to the National Science Foundation and United States Antarctic Program through Operation Deep Freeze. (U.S. Navy photo by Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist RJ Stratchko), modified, https://www.navsea.navy.mil/Media/News/Article-View/Article/3653655/us-coast-guards-polar-star-cuts-through-ice-with-help-of-nswcpd/

The recent US-Finland icebreaker deal has two objectives: close the capability gap with Russia in the High North and thaw out a long-frozen segment of the US shipbuilding industry.

Cheap, Accurate, Lethal: Laser-Guided Rockets Are Reshaping Global Air Defense

The Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS), which adds a laser guidance system to unguided rockets. Image: US Marine Corps/Lance Cpl. Cody J. Ohira

Conventional air defense has been disrupted in an age of drone warfare, where sophisticated and expensive systems risk being overwhelmed by mass strikes. But military and civilian authorities are now beginning to adapt on the defensive side, and a new equilibrium is forming.

From Strength to Strength: CSSC Merger Hones China Shipbuilding Edge

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China’s CSSC merger is more than a business deal. It is a geopolitical declaration, a signal that Beijing intends to dominate not only the oceans but also the industrial means of sustaining that dominance.

Talisman Sabre 25: More Than Just an Exercise

Rockets streak into the air from six M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems during a combined live-fire portion of Exercise Talisman Sabre 25 in Queensland, Australia, July 14, 2025. (U.S. Army photo by Master Sgt. Matthew Keeler) https://www.army.mil/article/287350/growth_in_participation_new_capabilities_made_talisman_sabre_25_successful

Talisman Sabre 25, the largest joint military exercise between the United States and Australia, represents a powerful signal of allied readiness, technological advancement, and deterrence in the critical theater of the Indo-Pacific.

Distributed Maritime Ops: Is the US Navy Ready for China?

Multinational ships sail in formation July 22, off the coast of Hawaii during Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) 2024. Twenty-nine nations, 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, more than 150 aircraft and 25,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC in and around the Hawaiian Islands, June 27 to Aug. 1. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2024 is the 29th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Corban Lundborg), modified, https://www.navair.navy.mil/news/TTSD-Bolsters-Fleet-Readiness-and-Partnerships-RIMPAC-2024/Thu-08152024-1157

Distributed Maritime Ops seeks to increase the resilience of US forces against Chinese A2/AD threats by complicating enemy targeting and leveraging technological advantages, but success is still contingent on the robustness of US logistics and industrial support.

Disruptive Maritime Tech and the Future of Naval Power

230913-N-N3764-1001 NAVAL STATION KEY WEST, Fl. - (Sept. 13, 2023) -- Commercial operators deploy Saildrone Voyager Unmanned Surface Vessels (USVs) out to sea in the initial steps of U.S. 4th Fleet’s Operation Windward Stack during a launch from Naval Air Station Key West’s Mole Pier and Truman Harbor, Sept. 13, 2023. Operation Windward Stack is part of 4th Fleet’s unmanned integration campaign, which provides the Navy a region to experiment with and operate unmanned systems in a permissive environment, develop Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) against near-peer competitors, and refine manned and unmanned Command and Control (C2) infrastructure, all designed to move the Navy to the hybrid fleet. (U.S. Navy photo by Danette Baso Silvers/Released) - modified

Low-cost, high-impact technologies are redefining sea control, power projection, and naval dominance in a contested maritime domain.

AI and Asymmetric Threats: A Fork in the Road for US Navy Modernization

Ships from the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group (GRFCSG) and the Bataan Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), and Hellenic Navy frigate HS Navarinon (F 461) sail in formation in the Mediterranean Sea, Dec. 31, 2023. The ships from the GRFCSG include the first-in-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile USS The Sullivans (DDG 68), USS Bulkeley (DDG 84), and USS Delbert D. Black (DDG 119). The ships from the Bataan ARG include the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5), the San Antonio Class-class amphibious transport dock USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19), Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50). The U.S. maintains forward deployed, ready, and postured forces to deter aggression and support security and stability around the world. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky)

As the US Navy grapples with quantity and cost challenges in its conventional shipbuilding program, small tech startups hold out the promise of a swifter adaptation to the asymmetric realities of modern conflict.

India, Australia, and the Indo-Pacific Imperative

cc Government of India, modified, The Prime Minister of Australia Hon Anthony Albanese on his visit to #India, embarked the indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant at Mumbai. He was received onboard by Adm R Hari Kumar CNS with a Guard of Honour. https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?search=Albanese+Vikrant&title=Special:Search&profile=advanced&fulltext=1&ns0=1&ns6=1&ns12=1&ns14=1&ns100=1&ns106=1#/media/File:Prime_Minister_of_Australia_Anthony_Albanese_embarked_the_indigenous_aircraft_carrier_INS_Vikrant.jpg

An increasingly aggressive China is solidifying bilateral relations between New Delhi and Canberra.

PLA Navy on the Rise in East Asia

The PLA Navy's Liaoning aicraft carrier, cc rhk111, modified, Flickr, (eng.chinamil.com.cn / Photo by Zhang Lei), public domain,

Bolstered Chinese military spending and a rise in altercations with the US Navy are both results of Beijing’s ambitions to expand the Chinese defense perimeter into the South China Sea.

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