The State of the USN's Combat Logistics Force Ships with Dr. James Holmes, on Midrats

numbers matter

How is a maritime power like the United States going to be able to sustain a fight against a land power with four times its population, a larger Navy, and is located on the other side of the Pacific?

The only reliable way you can get the fuel, weapons, and supplies is with a robust force of combat logistics ships.

Do we have that force? Do our budgets and plans match realistic requirements?

We're going to dive in deep on the topic today from 5-6pm Eastern with returning guest, Dr. James Holmes.

Dr. Holmes is the inaugural J. C. Wylie Chair of Maritime Strategy. He is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, Salve Regina University, Providence College, and the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Holmes graduated from the Naval War College in 1994 and earned the Naval War College Foundation Award as the top graduate in his class. He previously served on the faculty of the University of Georgia School of Public and International Affairs.

A former U.S. Navy surface warfare officer, he served as engineering and gunnery officer on board USS Wisconsin (BB-64), directed an engineering course at the Surface Warfare Officers School Command, and taught Strategy and Policy at the Naval War College, College of Distance Education. His books include Theodore Roosevelt and World Order: Police Power in International Relations, Chinese Naval Strategy in the 21st Century: The Turn to Mahan, Indian Naval Strategy in the 21st Century, Strategy in the Second Nuclear Age: Power, Ambition, and the Ultimate Weapon, two editions of Red Star over the Pacific: China’s Rise and the Challenge to U.S. Maritime Strategy, and most recently A Brief Guide to Maritime Strategy. His books appear on the U. S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Indo-Pacific Command professional reading lists.

We will pin our discussion today on his recent article, More Combat Logistics Force Ships? Yes Please! at the Center for Maritime Strategy.

You can listen here or at the below.