ABSTRACT
Germany, the United States, the Soviet Union, China and India all staked a claim for global status, in part through their fleets and their activities at sea. The Cold War may have seen a different pattern of naval diplomacy from that which went before, primarily based on the might of the Eastern and Western blocs, but it was all, in the main, a state-centric understanding of effect. Mahan in America and Corbett in England — the writers with the greatest lasting impact on naval strategy — had much to say about sea power, but any reader must look hard at their work to find anything more than an oblique reference to the utility of navies in the pursuit of national political goals when not fighting wars. Gunboat diplomacy is an instantly recognizable term, probably conjuring thoughts of 19th-century coercion and unwelcome, strong-arm tactics. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.
