Globalization : implications of and for the modern / post-modern navies of the Asia Pacific

Abstract

Navies both reflect and help determine the nature of the societies in which they operate. This is as true at the international level as it is at the domestic and national levels. It is the contention of this paper that the navies of the Asia Pacific, as elsewhere, are developing in ways which reflect competing attitudes towards, and involvement in, the process of globalization. In brief two models or paradigms of naal development seem to be emerging. The first is teh traditional model of naval roles and capabilities in which naval developments reflect national concerns and a nation-state-cnetred view of international society, that will sometimes tend to be associated with a certain wariness about globalization. The second paradigm, however, in part derives from more positive attitudes towards globalization. In this non-traditional approach, there is relatively more focus on the international system, and the nations's place within that system. Inevitably, this feeds through to rather different conceptions of the roles and required capabilities of naval forces. For want of anything better, this paper will label these traditional and the non-traditional paradigms "modern" and "post-modern" respectively. In crude terms, the modern paradigm of naval development may be said to envisage competition between navies, while the post-modern is more cooperative and collaborative in nature, perhaps aimed against some common adversary at sea or on land.