Posts tagged as:

Russia

Unpopular Opinion: Russia’s Sub Fleet is Dying

by Craig Hooper on July 7, 2018

For all the dire talk about Russia’s undersea resurgence and phoenix-like re-emergence from post-Cold War disarray, Russia’s nuclear sub fleet is dying. There is no denying it. Despite all the hand-wringing over increased undersea activity and fretful talk of new sub designs and weapons, nothing of substance has changed since the Cold War. Outside of […]

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Make Asian Hotlines A Regional Diplomatic Priority:

by admin on February 8, 2014

The U.S. Navy’s desire for a direct Navy-to-Navy Hotline with China is not new, and has been articulated every few years to little or no effect. If direct Navy-to-Navy Hotlines between operational commanders have the potential to be important in Asian crisis management, then the U.S. Navy must start leading an effort to 1) make […]

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French arms for sale: Reckless opportunism or glue for a future NATO?

by Craig Hooper on January 10, 2011

Back in 2008, In NDIA’s National Defense Magazine, I called for the purchase of the Mistral-class “projection and command” ships, noting that the acquisition of the vessels would be an ideal mix of capability and geopolitical utility. In what was a sidebar discussion of next-generation hospital ships, Jim Dolbow and I snuck in some geopolitical […]

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North Korea eying subs as nuclear delivery platforms?

by Craig Hooper on December 13, 2010

Last week’s breathless Washington Times “Inside the Ring” report on North Korea’s interest in nuclear anti-ship weaponry is unrealistic, but, as much as I hate to admit it, the underlying idea–using subs as a nuclear delivery platform–is plausible. But first, step away from Gertz and his China-based fear-mongering. Let’s drop the Chinese-threat lenses, and realize […]

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On spying and premature gloating:

by Craig Hooper on July 13, 2010

In light of the long-pursued “Illegals” spy case with Russia, every commentator under the sun has taken it upon themselves to mock Russia’s spycraft.  And why not?  The idea that Russia would maintain such a sad “odd lot” of characters is, on the surface, laughable. But resist the urge to snicker. There’s probably more to […]

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NextNavy aboard the RFS Varyag (011):

by Craig Hooper on June 22, 2010

I spent much of yesterday aboard Russia’s “Carrier Killer”, the Pacific Fleet’s Flagship RFS Varyag (011).  The Varyag’s captain, Captain Eduard V. Moskalenko, was kind enough to give a few of us a personal tour of the vessel.  It was great. We’ll talk more about this unprecedented Port Call later (the first Russian warship to […]

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San Francisco to host Japan MSDF and Russian Navy ships

by Craig Hooper on June 11, 2010

In a few weeks, thanks to the Russian Navy and Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force, San Francisco will get to re-live it’s naval heyday. The unprecedented set of visits means San Francisco will be host to the largest naval concentration in years…It’s probably going to be bigger than annual U.S. Fleet Week! I do hope that […]

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Arctic meet turns frosty:

by Craig Hooper on March 30, 2010

As the Arctic heats up, diplomatic meetings are getting rather frosty. You might have missed this, but Canada got a public rebuke from the U.S. yesterday over Arctic policy.  From the Voice of America: On Viagra price Monday, Canada hosted a meeting of foreign ministers from five countries with Arctic coastlines for talks on maritime […]

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