Sea Power Theory Research Articles

Sea Power as National Defence: Has Indonesia implemented it?

The objective is to analyze the role of maritime defense in Indonesia's national strength and alliances, examining modern naval capabilities, regulations, investment, and Mahan's Sea Power principles for strategic readiness and economic integration in the 21st century. The research employs a descriptive qualitative method, focusing on in-depth understanding and data interpretation. Triangulation is used for data validity, and analysis follows an inductive approach without generalization. Additionally, it utilizes sea power theory and defense diplomacy concepts to explore Indonesia's maritime strength and diplomatic efforts. Sea Power is an important issue for all countries in the world. Several maritime conflicts have gotten out of control due to a lack of input regarding naval defence strategies. Such as conflicts over the dynamics of China's militarisation in the South China Sea (LCS) region or the Russia-Ukraine Black Sea conflict. Considering Indonesia as a maritime country that is required to immediately provide national defence in the future, to prevent future conflicts, following the application of sea power, Indonesia is considered to have achieved the criteria in this matter. Therefore, through the application of Alferd Thayer Mahan's "Sea Power" theory, researchers try to adapt this theory to several Indonesian efforts in the 21st Century with an interest in highlighting the Indonesian Navy's efforts and strategies in achieving contemporary sea power in the 21st century. With a focus on research into Indonesia's national interests in achieving sea power and Indonesian naval strategy. With the results, it is hoped that readers will be able to realize the importance of the sea and find out to what extent Indonesia has implemented Mahan's theory by examining the two superpower countries, the US and China, which are countries that have applied this theory to their navies

Influences behind the development of South Korea’s shipbuilding industry from the 1960s to the 2000s

From the 1960s to the 2000s, the Republic of Korea (ROK) witnessed the rapid development of its shipbuilding industry, establishing itself as one of the world’s largest shipbuilders. This article seeks to answer the question of what drove the rapid development of South Korea’s shipbuilding industry. It accomplishes this by examining both classical sea power theory and the unique South Korean shipbuilding development model of the 1960s to the 2000s. Drawing from primary sources obtained from the ROK Presidential Archive and secondary sources, including newspapers and scholarly articles, this paper concludes that a combination of classic drivers of sea power development – including maritime commerce and threats – and the unique South Korean model, characterised by government subsidies and investments in both commercial shipbuilding and warship construction, contributed significantly to the development of South Korea’s shipbuilding industry. Finally, by learning from South Korea’s experience, developing and middle power countries looking to establish their shipbuilding industry should consider subsidising the industry in its early stages and contributing to a healthy ecosystem by investing in both commercial and warship construction.

Politics of Non-Traditional Security: The Weakness of the Maritime Security and Its impact on the Recurrence of Illegal Fishing in the Waters of Aceh

This article examines non-traditional security politics with an emphasis on illegal fishing that can harm international relations, the environment, and human security. This article investigates why illicit fishing by foreign and Indonesian fishing vessels is prevalent in Aceh Province. Illegal fishing cases in Aceh were investigated utilizing Mahan's Sea Power Theory. The research approach employed is qualitative, with data gathered through in-depth interviews and a literature review. The study's findings include incidents of illicit fishing caused by regional, community, and government variables. Aceh's distance from the central government, location on the border, and abundance of marine resources are also regional factors. Aspects of the community include the tiny number of fishermen, the custom of preventing going to sea, and the continued use of prohibited fishing gear. Finally, the government aspects which include a lack of control and legislation encourage illicit fishing in Aceh.

Концептуализация морской силы в мировой политике

The article studies the formation of the sea power theory and its influence on world politics. Although seas influenced the rise and fall of states since ancient times, they acquired strategic importance only after the beginning of the Age of Discovery. From that moment, sea turned into a global transport network and also became a political instrument for transforming the balance of power in the world. After that the formation of the sea power of states began, which led to the rise of the British colonial empire. The research of the success of Great Britain formed the theory of sea power, which developed in the works of Western geopoliticians A. Mahan, F. Colomb, J. Corbett, and others, including Russian theorists N. L. Klado, S. G. Gorshkov, etc. Despite the fact that initially the founder of the theory, American Admiral Mahan, studied the experience of Great Britain to apply it to American politics for the rise of the United States on the world stage, at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries the theory quickly gained popularity among many other countries. According to some researchers, this was one of the reasons for the beginning of the “naval arms race” in Europe that rose contradictions in the distribution of the balance of power, which subsequently led to the First World War. It is indicated that the theory of sea power determined the global politics throughout the 20th century, and also led to the emergence of the United States not only as a great sea power, but also a superpower. Therefore, the main purpose of the article is to study the influence of sea power on the world politics of the 20th century. The theory also remains relevant today, because the relevance of using the World Ocean in achieving economic and political goals does not decrease, and therefore the study of the theory can be useful for the development of the maritime and naval strategies of countries.

INDONESIA DALAM MENGHADAPI PERBATASAN LAUT (PERSPEKTIF ILMU SOSIAL)

Indonesian is located in the equatorial region,between the continents of Asia and Australia which exclusively connects the economies of developed countries. In addition, Indonesia is also located between 2 oceans, namely the Pacific and the Indian Ocean, which makes a connecting area between countries in East Asia and Southeast Asia and South Asia. The purpose of this study is to find out: (1) problems and problems solving regarding the emergence of maritime terrorism issues from a social science perspective. (2) problems and solutions to Indonesia’s problems in realizing the vision of the world’s maritime axis from a social science perspective.This study uses defense theory from Brigadier General (Purn) Makmur Supriyanto in his book “About Defense Science” and sea power theory from Alfred Thayer Mahan using secondary data, data collection techniques through library research and qualitative data analysis to reach conclusions. Based on the result of the research, it shows that since the collapse of the WTC building in September 2011 and the Bali bombing, Indonesia has provided information on terrorism and activelty participated in the war on terror policy proclaimed by the United States. From a social science perspective, Indonesia can minimize the emergence of maritime terrorism issues using defense theory. The main idea of the vision of the world maritime axis is to develop maritime characteristics and emphasize the “archipelagic book” namely the insight that Indonesian waters are an economic potential and national strength. From a social science perspective, Indonesia can realize the vision of the world’s maritime axis by using the sea power theory. From the two problems described above, we can solve both using the concept of maritime security.

THE DOCK ESTABLISHMENT TO SUPPORT MARITIME SECURITY OPERATIONS IN BANGKA BELITUNG

Navy Base of Bangka Belitung is a type B Navy Base under the operation of Main Navy Base III Jakarta. As a base, it has an important role in the series of Integrated Fleet Weapon Systems (Sistem Senjata Armada Terpadu, SSAT). Nave Base of Bangka Belitung has the main task of supporting administration and logistics for operation elements. Besides that, it plays the role of a unit that enforces the law and maintains maritime security, and also plays an active role in empowering the marine defense area. The port is an important facility in supporting the presence of navy elements that can provide a deterrence effect against threats to maritime security. However, the absence of a dock at Bangka Belitung Navy Base will limit the power of the navy element, that is why the process of law enforcement at sea will be carried out optimally with the presence of a dock. The purpose of this study was to analyze the dock establishment to support the navy power in Bangka Belitung Navy Base securing its maritime area. The theories used were sea power theory, maritime security, dock concept, and International Ship and Port Security Code (ISPS Code). This study used the literature review method, primary data obtained through important files related to the object of research and supported by secondary data in the form of books, journals, and documents related to the construction of the Navy Base of Bangka Belitung. The results showed that the dock can improve the performance of Bangka Belitung Navy Base elements in the support function of anchorage facilities, support for ship maintenance and repair facilities as well as support for supply facilities, support for law enforcement, and maintaining maritime security, as well as empowering marine areas

Toward Better Maritime Cooperation—A Proposal from the Chinese Perspective

The development of sea power theory has undergone a transformation in the contemporary context. The 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Initiative, as proposed by China, is promoted as an effort to establish a cooperative development model. This approach would also seem to be consistent with the essence of modern sea power and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road Initiative. This article argues that in order to establish a viable legal cooperative framework, “hard power” cooperation and “soft power” cooperation models should be introduced, on the basis of current international treaties and customary law, and with reference to international experience.

RELEVANSI PERAN PANGKALAN TNI ANGKATAN LAUT TERHADAP TERWUJUDNYA WILAYAH PERTAHANAN YANG BERTUMPU PADA PULAU-PULAU BESAR (STUDI KASUS PADA LANTAMAL III/JAKARTA)

The Main Naval Base III Jakarta as a regional command unit has a role in preparing formidable space, tools and fighting conditions by empowering marine defense areas through fostering maritime potential (binpotmar) as part of the Archipelago Marine Defense Strategy (SPLN). In its implementation, national defense at sea must follow the defense policy set by the state. Currently, the government has ratified the general policy of state defense for 2020-2024 with one of the policy targets being the realization of a defense area based on large islands. With the determination of this national defense policy, it is necessary to synchronize the SPLN that has been carried out by the Navy with one of the strategic objectives of the policy. The purpose of this study is to determine the relationship between the empowerment of the marine defense area through BinPotmar and elements in an effort to realize a defense area based on large islands. This study uses a qualitative research method with a Grunded Theory approach using relevance theory, role theory, coaching theory, Sea Power theory and logistics theory. The results of the study conclude that the empowerment of marine defense areas through binpotmar has relevance to the realization of defense areas that rely on large islands.

Geopolitical aspects of navigation front of the Arctic in the XXI century: strategic routes for Russia and China

The 21st century is marked by changes in matters of power balancing and system polarity, which could be explained by Geopolitical theories. In this paper, we intend to investigate how the classical Geopolitical theories – such as the Heartland/Pivot Area theory, wrote down by Halford J. Mackinder, and the Sea Power theory, wrote down by Alfred T. Mahan – could be faced and readapted amid the new settles of strategic routes and military development needs, brought by the ice-melting of the Arctic Ocean. The study cases will concentrate on Russia and China, due to their recent investments in the opening of new strategic routes for navigation and trade, including the Arctic routes, demanding inputs on technologies, transport innovation, and military emulation. Working on a qualitative method, with analysis of primary sources (such as government documents on strategies for the Arctic), and secondary sources (such as books, articles, interviews and other published materials on the topic), we hypothesize that: (i) the classical theories never predicted the ice-melting of the Arctic Ocean, perceiving it as a natural shield, and not as a navigable pathway; (ii) that the Arctic defrosting opens up new strategic routes for other countries besides Russia and China, like Canada and the United States, emerging a new conflict spot due to their different interests around this opportunity. Based on that, the preliminary results point out that: (i) it is not possible to apply the classical theories of geopolitics to these new configurations of the international system, without at least a reinterpretation/readaptation to the current context, which would alter all the power dynamics predicted by its authors; (ii) Russia and China are readequating themselves to this new scenario, in order to gain some advantages in a hypothetical dispute for the Arctic control.

Implementation of the Philippines-Indonesia Coordinated Patrol in the Sea Border Area of Indonesia and the Philippines from the Sea Power Perspective

The Philippines-Indonesia coordinated patrol (Corpat Philindo) is an implementation of the 1975 Border Patrol Agreement (BPA) which was carried out on a scheduled basis by the two countries in the context of securing the Indonesia-Philippines maritime border. Corpat philindo is the response of the two countries to the existence of traditional border crossers of border communities as well as to guarantee the country's sovereignty from criminal acts and law violations in the border sea between Indonesia and the Philippines. The purpose of this study is to determine the advantages and disadvantages of implementing the Corpat Philindo which have been implemented from the perspective of marine power. The theories used in the analysis are international cooperation security theory and sea power theory. This study uses qualitative data analysis techniques using secondary data and then uses theory to identify a process of events that the author studied. The results of this study conclude that the use of defense equipment, operational areas and support bases in the Corpat Philindo have not yet fulfilled the embodiment of sea power in the Philippines-Indonesia border sea.

China’s Maritime Silk Road Initiative: A quest for sea power

Much has been written about China’s deep ambitions as the country moves towards great power status. The Maritime Silk Road Initiative (MSRI) is just one example of how China is flexing its muscles, and if history is to be believed, there is a strong correlation between maritime success and national economic prosperity. The study, on which this article reports, examined China’s MSRI through the lens of sea power theory. It was argued that the New Silk Road, which will most likely be backed by a modern blue-water navy, could represent a new era of maritime supremacy. However, to see the MSRI as a pursuit of sea power requires an understanding of how maritime logistics functions as power. The seamless movement of goods across the ocean is at the heart of the MSRI. Therefore, the research question that was pursued related to how maritime logistics functions as a tool for power projection. Although sea power theory recognises merchant shipping as a core element of sea power, it was further argued that scholarly work in critical logistics and mobility studies could enhance our understanding of logistical power. The study therefore aimed to conceptualise the MSRI through the lens of sea power by highlighting maritime logistics as a strategic conduit for power projection.

THE ROLE OF THE BANGKA BELITUNG NAVAL BASE IN SUPPORTING THE SEA SECURITY OPERATIONS IN THE INDONESIA ARCHIPELAGIC SEA LANE I

<p>The work areas that are the responsibility of the Bangka Belitung Naval base are still quite vulnerable and responsible for problems and difficulties that could disrupt the ALKI I or the Indonesian archipelagic sea lane I. The area for which the naval base of Bangka Belitung is responsible, is not balanced. However, it must continue to provide the best support for all KRI (Warships of the Republic of Indonesia) which anchored in the Bangka Belitung Naval Base. This study tries to analyze the role of the Bangka Belitung Naval base in supporting maritime security operations in ALKI I. The study uses descriptive qualitative methods about understanding the Bangka Belitung Naval base in supporting maritime security operations at ALKI I. This study uses the role of base theory, Sea Power theory and Navy trinity theory. The results of the study show that the Bangka Belitung Navy Base has not yet supported KRI or not to carry out the provision. Therefore, it is agreed that the Bangka Belitung Naval Base would provide complete facilities and infrastructure including anchoring, to be able to support KRI to operate safely at sea in assisting sovereignty in the ALKI I region.</p><p><strong>Keywords:</strong> Naval Base Role, Maritime Security, ALKI I</p>

China’s Rise and its Implications for ASEAN Region: A Case Study of South China Sea

During the last four decades, China has achieved a status of a powerful state with a huge soft power, integration in the international economy, growing middle class along with increasing participation in international institutions and stock exchanges. Not only it has participated into international institutions but has also set new economic regimes like Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). China’s growing thrust for developments, energy and resources, has enabled it for huge claims within South China Sea. Its recent steps of creating artificial islands in South China Sea and future air bases on them along with other developments are quite notable and have been perceived as China’s shift from a soft power to hard power. South China Sea is extremely significant Sea with its geostrategic importance being the second busiest trade routes. Approximately 60 percent of Japanese and Taiwanese energy resources raw material is supplied through the South China Sea. At the same time the Sea is highly rich in energy resources and different analysis have been made to give an estimate of gas and oil reserves in South China Sea. Due to geostrategic significance of the Sea neighboring countries have asserted their claims on its various Islands however; mainly conflict is over islands of Spartly and Paracel. The ongoing territorial conflict and resulting tension is creating troubles for the regional peace by making regional as well as global powers to be concerned over China’s activities. The study will be investigated under the Sea Power theory of Mahan that how the balance of power is taking shift within region in wake of rise of China, and how it will breed implications for region.

China’s rights and interests in the South China Sea: challenges and policy responses

ABSTRACTAlfred Thayer Mahan, the founder of sea power theory, noted that control of ocean was a great influence on the rise and fall of states. In this sense, China’s maintenance of its maritime rights and interests will determine its economic prosperity, international standings, as well as influencing its national security and political international standing. While a maritime power with jurisdiction over a maritime area of more than 3 million km2, China’s maritime rights and interests have, however, faced long-term and complicated challenges. In recent years, especially, the disputes between China and other neighbouring countries over sovereignty of islands and maritime demarcation in the South China Sea have become increasingly intense. The article first outlines in terms of emerging challenges to China’s rights and interests in the South China Sea. The latter sections of the paper reflect on key issues for Chinese sovereignty and maritime rights, and analyses China’s policy response in the South China Sea.

Three-Stage Theory of Harmonious Ocean — An Investigation on Harmonious Marine Environment and Sea Power Relations

Environmental protection and economic development are obviously not only limited to the natural science area, but also deeply involved in the interplay between social science area and the geopolitical studies. Today, competition between countries mainly exists in the forms of competition for energy and other resources, the advancement of science and technology and the harmonious development between man and nature. The important marine strategy in contemporary society for a nation is how to acquire peaceful access to a harmonious marine environment to improve the overall national competition without breaking global peace. Harmonious marine environment, and its protection and economic development are discussed in the article. In combination of Mahan’s sea power theory with current developmental trends of new ocean century, the new three-stage theory is creatively put forward by the author to gain marine rights and interests, meaning three important elements of harmonious ocean view theory in modern international society, which are inter-coordinated, inter-connected and interacted.

Red star over the Pacific: China's rise and the challenge to U.S. maritime strategy

Combining a close knowledge of Asia and an ability to tap Chinese-language sources with naval combat experience and expertise in sea-power theory, the authors assess how the rise of Chinese sea power will affect U.S. maritime strategy in Asia. They argue that China is laying the groundwork for a sustained challenge to American primacy in maritime Asia, and to defend this hypothesis they look back to Alfred Thayer Mahan's sea-power theories, now popular with the Chinese. The book considers how strategic thought about the sea shapes Beijing's deliberations and compares China's geostrategic predicament to that of the Kaiser's Germany a century ago. It examines the Chinese navy's operational concepts, tactics, and capabilities and appraises China's ballistic-missile submarine fleet. The authors conclude that unless Washington adapts, China will present a challenge to America's strategic position. Selected: For the Chief of Naval Operation's Reading List By The Atlantic as one of the Best Books of the Year on foreign affairs in 2010 By Proceedings magazine as a Notable Naval book in 2010.

Chinese maritime concepts

The ancient Chinese always had a complex psychic relation to the vast ocean: longing, but disdaining. On the one hand, they thought there were elfish hills, immortals, and fairy trees abroad; on the other hand, they viewed overseas residents as strange. Before the fifteenth century, the Chinese people were capable of conducting maritime operations positively and entering into contacting peaceful and friendly contacts with foreign countries, the establishment of Ming Dynasty suppression of the coastal areas and the closed-door policy became its basic national policy. After the failure of the first Opium War, some coastal military officials and intellectual elites took the lead in “seeing the world”; they were cognizant of the superior might of western firepower and claimed that the Chinese should “learn from the ‘barbarians’ advanced skills to resist their aggression”. However, even those provincial magnates who actively advocated coastal defense such as Li Hongzhang and Shen Baozhen also failed to really comprehend the oceans' great economic and military value and separated themselves from the set pattern of the old land-based coastal defense. It was not until the beginning of the twentieth century, with the introduction of A. T. Mahan's Sea Power Theory, that the Chinese people gained a comparatively profound cognition of the importance of protecting national maritime interests. The democratic revolutionist Sun Yat-sen insisted that man should strive for survival and development by means of the oceans. However, at the beginning of the establishment of the People's Republic of China, faced with the economic blockade and political pressure by western powers, the Chinese government still took land development and “coastal security” as the center and neglected the effective management of the maritime territory. Since “reform and opening-up”, the second generation of central collective leaders of the Communist Party of China (CPC) with Deng Xiaoping at its core, proposed the coastal strategic concept of “offshore defense” and the principle of “laying sovereignty and jointly exploring” for handling maritime disputes, and the third generation of central collective leaders of CPC with Jiang Zemin, at its core, emphasized a better understanding of the oceans from the height of strategy. Nowadays, under the influence of the increasing emphasis on the oceans all over the world, the voice of the Chinese government and Chinese people to establish a strong naval power has become increasingly stronger, but its action is still impeded by many aspects.

Red Star over the Pacific: China's Rise and the Challenge to U.S. Maritime Strategy (review)

Reviewed by: Red Star over the Pacific: China's Rise and the Challenge to U.S. Maritime Strategy Wei-chin Lee (bio) Toshi Yoshihara and James R. Holmes. Red Star over the Pacific: China's Rise and the Challenge to U.S. Maritime Strategy. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 2010. xii, 293 pp. Hardcover $36.95, ISBN 978-1-59114-390-1. If Edgar Snow's Red Star over China foretold in 1937 why the peripheral Chinese Communist Party had the potential to gain victory in the Chinese civil war in 1949, Yoshihara and Holmes's Red Star over the Pacific conveys the message that the Chinese are coming with the intent to march to the seas beyond Taiwan and into the Pacific. This message undoubtedly attracts attention and concern in East Asia because China has long been considered more of a continental power, busy managing and monitoring its long territorial borders with fourteen states, than an ambitious maritime nation. Even if China decides to seek maritime dominance, its oceanic frontier is blocked by a foreign-controlled island chain that encloses the entire Chinese coastal line. As one Chinese analyst frankly admits, China faces the predicament of "having seas but not the ocean" (p. 51)—humming a tune that recalls imperial Germany's struggle to develop a sizable and capable navy that could open the gates to the Atlantic during the age of British naval supremacy. Nevertheless, China's booming economy and technological innovations have offered both the resources needed to upgrade and uplift its naval force and the technological sophistication in missile development required to overcome the geographic barrier to the ocean. This is certainly an alarming signal to the United States, which has served as the predominant provider and guarantor of regional security and stability in the Western Pacific since 1945. Consequently, this book is a welcome addition to the study of Chinese military development. It helps readers size up China's motives and moves for a better grasp of China's naval challenges to the United States and other regional players. Any book on naval development must pay tribute to Alfred Thayer Mahan for his geopolitical insights in strategic analysis. The book opens with a layout of Mahan's dual tridents of sea power. The first trident explains why countries covet access to distant places to secure access to sources of economic well-being—foreign trade, commerce, and resources—by political measures conducive to military, particularly substantial naval, strength. With economics and commerce ranked as the predominant priorities in the first trident, any sea power should concentrate on the second trident's three prongs: domestic production base, merchant and naval shipping for economic exchanges, and overseas markets. Therefore, Mahan stresses the importance of forward naval bases and powerful battle fleets to retain command of the sea for unobstructed access to commercial benefits. For Mahan, geopolitical conditions and strategic considerations for gaining maritime access for commercial purposes construct the logic of sea power, while the material grammar of sea power consists of superior weaponry and operational platforms for naval battle efficiency and warfare. [End Page 281] In various chapters, the authors investigate and portray the intersection between Mahan's logic and grammar in China's recent naval development and deployment. By examining how Chinese military strategic thinkers interpret and apply Alfred Mahan's theory in China's geopolitical environment, chapter 2 of the book shows how Beijing pursues its maritime strategy. Much as with the introduction of Western ideas into China in the past, Chinese scholars and seafarers modify and adapt Mahan's thoughts to China's unique circumstances. They have incorporated the country's historical legacy of Sinocentric view and Mao's "active defense" concept into Mahan's malleable claims for a sea power theory "with Chinese characteristics" (p. 16). The complexity of regional alliance politics, the U.S. concerns over the effect of Kenneth Boulding's "loss-of-strength gradient" in its power projection, and China's initial jeune école approach to fleet building as well as diplomatic prudence have so far prevented both countries from outright and tense saber-rattling confrontations in their bilateral interactions in the Pacific. The authors point out that China's...

China's "Caribbean" in the South China Sea

Can the United States accommodate the rise of China without the strife that typically accompanies a disturbance to a settled equilibrium? Discerning how China views the seas will help answer this question. We argue that vocal strategists in Beijing look to Alfred Thayer Mahan for guidance on maritime strategy. Mahanian sea-power theory has predisposed many in Beijing to regard the South China Sea much as Americans once regarded the Caribbean Sea: as a preserve where commercial and political imperatives demand dominant naval power. Adjusting U.S. strategy to deter and conciliate a more assertive China is a critical task confronting Washington.

Mahan, a “Place in the Sun,” and Germany's Quest for Sea Power

In 1897 German chancellor Bernhard von Bulow told the Reichstag, “We do not want to put anyone into the shade, but we demand a place for ourselves in the sun.” The ensuing quest for a “place in the sun,” connoting both new colonial holdings and a belt of naval stations ringing the world, inaugurated a vigorous, largely ahistorical pursuit of German sea power. An American naval officer, Alfred Thayer Mahan, prodded the Germans into this break with their tradition of continental power. This paper examines the link between Mahanian sea-power theory and the German concept of a place in the sun prior to the First World War. It contends that the use and misuse of Mahan helped propel Germany into zero-sum competition with Great Britain. It also warns that today's rising powers may embark on a similar pursuit of sea power, posing a challenge to U.S. military strategy in Asia.