Four Ways US Naval Forces Should Be More Assertive
Non-aggressive assertiveness can achieve long-term advantages and have strategic effects.
By Capt. Robert Francis
Military Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
February 25, 2021
Some national-security experts may be wary of America’s new maritime-forces strategy, which calls for more assertiveness in day-to-day operations that relate to competition with other powers. This concern is understandable. But when forward-deployed forces are assertive without being aggressive, interaction between rivals need not lead to escalation. And these actions can achieve long-term advantages and have strategic effects.
This case is made at greater length in "Advantage at Sea: Prevailing with Integrated All-Domain Naval Power," the tri-service strategy document recently released by the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. While much of China’s malign behavior short of war includes weaponizing social media and infiltrating global supply chains, forward-deployed naval forces have their own part to play: they must deter and prevent escalation by presenting persistent and capable threats in regions where deviant actors do their bullying. To deter acts of further aggression, Naval forces must not only show they have the capability and capacity to act, they must also demonstrate a willingness to do so. That’s why it makes sense for forward deployed forces to be more assertive.
https://www.defenseone.com/ideas/2021/02/four-ways-us-naval-forces-should-be-more-assertive/172278/
