ABSTRACT
This chapter seeks to contribute to the debate by considering the extent to which it is useful to think about small navies as being members of a common group. It examines three self-described ‘small’ navies, the Irish Naval Service (INS), the Maltese Maritime Squadron and the Croatian Navy. The chapter also examines what their recent developments in areas such as policy, assets and operations illustrate about the utility of categorising the navies as comparable based on relative size. The Maltese Maritime Squadron is an example of a Mediterranean small navy that operates right on the forefront of migration issues. Unlike the Maltese example, Irish defence policy has seen relatively consistent growth in the significance of the naval element. The Croatian Navy was established in 1991 during the break-up of Yugoslavia. Thus, the INS may find that in some respects it has less in common with the Croatian Navy than it does with elements of the US, British or French navies.
