Maritime Security and Theories of Naval Warfare: Way Ahead for a Professional Navy

Abstract

Sri Lanka was engaged in a long drawn conflict for nearly three decades. The ocean around the country played a crucial role in this conflict. The government of Sri Lanka paid dearly for not maintaining maritime security at the desired level. The LTTE having appreciated the potential of the ocean for their growth and sustenance used it strategically. The Sea Tigers grew up to be a force to reckon with and was able to threaten the dominance of the Sri Lanka Navy. Theories on naval warfare have been in existence for a long time. For the purpose of this research the theories of sea control, asymmetric warfare and operational art will be examined. Navies in the world give a higher precedence to achieve sea control and exploit it to the fullest advantage. Once achieved, sea control allows a force to use the sea area for own purposes and deny the same to the adversary. Asymmetric warfare is defined as ‘warfare in which opposing groups have unequal resources, and the weaker opponent uses unconventional tactics to gain upper hand’. The operational art occupies an immediate and indispensable position to act as a bridge between policy and tactics. This paper is based on the author’s research for a PhD. The research is to evaluate the rise and fall of Sea Tigers and regaining sea control by Sri Lanka Navy using the concept of operational art and to develop an exploratory model to fight against threats to maritime security of a state. The data collection is based on qualitative interviews and focus group discussions. Research findings will be analysed with literature on naval theories.