Publisher's Synopsis
This detailed critical analysis of current US maritime strategy finds that strategy not only out-of-date, but potentially disastrous. During the 1980s, the Reagan administration supported a major naval build-up and demonstrated a predilection for an offensive naval strategy. Now, however, especially with the changing political, economic, and military conditions of the post-Cold War era, this posture is neither viable nor desirable. Under Gorbachev, the Soviets have made significant unilateral reductions in their naval forces. Both superpowers have reluctantly realized that the enormous costs of maintaining and building up modern military forces cannot be sustained under current economic conditions. And it is clear that other urgent priorities - such as the world-wide environmental crisis - will demand an increasing share of human and economic resources. All of these factors, the authors contend, present the United States with an unprecendented opportunity to restructure its naval strategy for the 1990s and beyond.;The authors suggest both short-term - reversing the naval arms race and adopting a defensive posture - and long-term - complete naval disarmament - goals. The first steps to achieving these goals are proposed and analyzed, and it is noted that there are already signs that the US Navy is willing to consider changes.;Computer software on a 5-1/4" IBM-compatible diskette for analyzing modern naval warfare is available in conjunction with the book.
