The new Soviet military doctrine and the future of the Maritime Strategy

Abstract

This thesis examines the continued applicability of the bastion concept as a basic assumption of the Maritime Strategy with respect to the new Soviet military doctrine. The methodology employed involves an examination of Soviet literature, naval hardware, and exercise/operating patterns to determine if there has been a shift in the Soviet emphasis upon protecting the SSBN force. The results show that even though the Soviets have made certain changes in the political aspects of their military doctrine, they will most likely continue to emphasize the protection of the SSBN as the primary mission of the Soviet Navy in the event of a war. In fact, as the numbers of strategic nuclear warheads are reduced by future arms control proposals, such as START, the Soviets will probably consider the protection of the SSBN force to be more important than in the past. Theses. (fr)