British sea power at the millennium

This article considers the security environment in which British sea power must operate; the key features of sea power that help to shape its role in promoting security; and the technological and resource allocation challenges for the Royal Navy in the future. Two major advantages of sea power are reach and poise—the ability to establish a presence and project power in a region and to maintain this presence, as required. In the future, British sea power must be capable of operating at some distance from home base; it must be able to act flexibly as crises develop; and it must ensure a capability to work in concert with other powers. These requirements inevitably will prove costly.