ABSTRACT
In the Cold War, expectations of any major war being quite short together with a realistic appreciation of the vulnerability of ports, and the large stocks of fuel and food held by most modern countries, all led to a focus on the attack of maritime communications as a way of interrupting the flow of military personnel and equipment to the area of operations. This reflected a long-held view of the symbolic importance to the Western Alliance of sea lines of communication (SLOCs). In 1953, for instance, the US Chief of Naval Operations pointed out:
Our entire politico-military philosophy today is based on the concept of collective security, which comprises overseas alliances, overseas bases, and US military forces deployed overseas. The keystone of this entire structure is the confidence felt by our allies that we can and will maintain control of the sea communications in the face of any threat.3
