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James Holmes

James Holmes

Foreign Policy

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China's Maritime Moves in South America: A Wake-Up Call for U.S. Leadership

Donald Trump Should Look South to Compete with China: China is still Mahanian. Twenty-one years ago I closed out my very first hefty journal article,...

monday 4

The National Interest

James Holmes

How Donald Trump Should Take on China: A Real Pivot to Asia

To Take On China, Trump Should Pivot to Asia - For Real: When he returns to the Oval Office come January, Donald Trump will inherit a very different...

15.11.2024 7

The National Interest

James Holmes

5 Ways Japan Could Have Won World War II

What You Need to Know: Japan faced insurmountable odds in WWII against the U.S. due to America's industrial and military supremacy. However, Japan...

10.11.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Should Donald Trump Risk the U.S. Navy in a War Against China?

When should you hazard pricey, hard-to-replace capital ships in battle? That question has vexed wartime naval commanders as long as there have been...

07.11.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Could Soon Get Patriot Missiles

Last week Reuters broke newish news on a development years in the making. Namely, the U.S. Navy is experimenting with deploying Army Patriot Advanced...

28.10.2024 20

The National Interest

James Holmes

Montana-Class: The U.S. Navy's Great Battleship Mistake?

Montana-class super battleships would have been nice-to-have assets for the U.S. Navy fleet during World War II and beyond. In a world of unbounded...

21.10.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

China Isn't Giving Up on the South China Sea

So I’ve been reading psychologist Philip Tetlock’s treatise on Expert Political Judgment . It’s a nifty piece of work, well worth your time....

16.10.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Naval History’s Hidden Lesson: The Dangers of Rushed Innovation

Innovation should be purposeful, not whimsical. That’s the message from Naval History and Heritage Command historian Tyler Pitrof’s book Too Far...

07.10.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

5 Ways Japan Could Have Somehow 'Won' World War II

Summary and What You Need to Know: Imperial Japan stood little chance of defeating the United States in World War II due to the vast disparity in...

05.10.2024 8

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Shouldn't Gloat over China's Submarine Setback

It seems China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy is not omnicompetent after all—sleepless efforts at image management notwithstanding. Last...

30.09.2024 4

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy's Paradigm-Shifting Navigation Plan

Lisa Franchetti is trying to break a paradigm. Admiral Franchetti is the newish chief of naval operations (CNO), or seniormost uniformed U.S. naval...

23.09.2024 5

The National Interest

James Holmes

How to Reboot the U.S. Navy

Troubles in the hallways? Change the culture. Everything a big institution does lies downstream from its culture. Institutions are groups. Culture is...

17.09.2024 4

The National Interest

James Holmes

U.S. Navy Iowa-Class Battleships: Could They Really Make a Comeback?

Over at Popular Mechanics , Kyle Mizokami reports on a video clip (see below) posted by Ryan Szimanski, curator of the USS New Jersey Museum and...

12.09.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Marine Corps Force Design: A Smart U.S. Plan to Counter China

A cheery huzzah! goes out to General Eric Smith, the newish commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps. This week Marine Corps headquarters released his...

03.09.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Lessons Learned: I Was The Last Person to Fire a U.S. Navy Battleship’s 16-Inch Guns

Summary and Key Points: The Iowa-class battleships, built during the 1940s, continue to captivate public interest despite their retirement over three...

27.08.2024 7

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Greats Agree: Ukraine's Kursk Offensive Is Strategic Malpractice

Strategic grandmasters would upbraid Ukraine’s leadership for hurling an offensive into the Russian border district of Kursk. Sure, Carl von...

26.08.2024 6

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Navy's Constellation-Class Frigate Problem Has No Easy Fix

The USS Constellation (FFG-62) frigate program is doing little to refurbish the U.S. Navy’s reputation for competence. Intended to deliver a...

21.08.2024 40

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy’s Logistical Challenges: A Threat to Naval Dominance?

The late Professor Michael Handel codified the “principle of continuity,” rebranding the Prussian soldier-scribe Carl von...

12.08.2024 8

The National Interest

James Holmes

Decoding A Naval Fleet: A Simplified Guide to Ship Types

So a young acquaintance asks what kinds of ships there are in a navy. That’s kind of a basic question. You would think it lends itself to a pithy...

07.08.2024 4

The National Interest

James Holmes

Do Europeans Support NATO?

Do Europeans support NATO? They certainly fret a lot about the future of the Atlantic Alliance. To hear them tell it, a return of Donald Trump to the...

26.07.2024 5

The National Interest

James Holmes

Could China's Navy Avoid U.S.-Style Fleet Aging Issues?

It has been a rare helter-skelter summer at the Holmes compound somewhere along the shores of the Narragansett Bay. Road trip to State College,...

16.07.2024 7

The National Interest

James Holmes

USS Carney's Epic Deployment: Protecting the Red Sea and Knocking Out Missiles

15.07.2024 6

The National Interest

James Holmes

U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets Now Have SM-6 Missiles (China Should Worry)

Summary and Key Points: The U.S. Navy has announced a major advancement with the successful integration of the SM-6 missile onto carrier-based...

11.07.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Joe Biden and the Perception Paradox

Perception is king in power politics. Audiences foreign and domestic take the measure of the leadership of a powerful nation—a behemoth like the...

02.07.2024 6

The National Interest

James Holmes

Is China at War in the South China Sea?

Is China at war in the South China Sea? You be the judge. Beyond dispute its conduct is warlike—and that has implications for those resisting its...

30.06.2024 20

The National Interest

James Holmes

Yes, the Houthis Could Hit a U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier with a Missile

Summary and Key Points: Rumors that Houthi militiamen have sunk or driven off the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower are false. Despite Houthi claims and some...

20.06.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Maritime Statecraft Is a Process, a Habit, and a Culture

I see maritime statecraft as a process, a habit indispensable in officers and officials, and a way of life for a society that aspires to do business...

11.06.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Strategic Wisdom Behind D-Day’s Success

06.06.2024 8

The National Interest

James Holmes

Taiwan Must Prepare for War with China

Economics pundit Noah Smith reports that a meme has been circulating among China-watchers of late. The meme holds that if you would just travel to...

05.06.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Future of Aircraft Carriers: Are They Still Worth the Investment?

Summary: The aircraft carrier's role has evolved from scouting for battleships to becoming a primary strike force and geopolitical tool. ...

31.05.2024 20

The National Interest

James Holmes

5 Essential Books on Maritime Strategy You Need to Read

Admiral Lisa Franchetti, America’s chief of naval operations or top uniformed naval officer, recently released her first Navy Professional Reading...

23.05.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

How Do Alliances End?

15.05.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

How the Navy Could Make Every Warship Into an 'Aircraft Carrier'

15.05.2024 80

The National Interest

James Holmes

China's Navy Is Growing More Powerful By the Day

China’s surface fleet is increasingly footloose—including its aviation component. Backed by an impressive armory of shore-based weapons, the fleet...

08.05.2024 60

The National Interest

James Holmes

A Declining China Is a Dangerous China

China is in a hurry. It’s in a hurry because the Chinese Communist Party entertains ambitions of breathtaking sweep yet has fewer and fewer...

02.05.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Zumwalt-Class Stealth Destroyer: Hypersonic Missile Truck or Giant Failure?

Zumwalt-Class: Will it be a success or failure in the long run? It is neither fast nor cheap nor easy to swap out a warship’s major armament for...

23.04.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

Masters of the Air Reveals the Nature of Middle East Wars

History is in the making whenever nations’ airy navies grapple in the central blue. And you can learn from it. I just finished delayed-action...

17.04.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Messy Battlespace That Would Be a U.S. vs. China War

It’s a truism that the Pacific is an amphibian theater. Just look at your map and behold! the oceanic region’s majestic vacantness. That being the...

09.04.2024 20

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Should Make Every Warship Into an 'Aircraft Carrier'

This month over at the Naval Institute Proceedings, Lieutenant Commander Jeff Zeberlein proffers an intriguing, if oblique, take on the future of the...

02.04.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Can’t Afford a Fleet of “Battleships”?

Battleships are back in the news thanks to USS New Jersey, an Iowa-class dreadnought now retired as a museum ship in Camden, New Jersey. Last week,...

25.03.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Military's New Defense Budget Makes No Sense

Walter Lippmann, call your office. Last week the Biden Pentagon submitted its budget request for fiscal year 2025. If executed as written, the request...

19.03.2024 5

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy's Real China Problem Won't Be Easy to Fix

Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro recently barnstormed Northeast Asian shipyards in hopes of enlisting investment from allied nations to help...

12.03.2024 20

The National Interest

James Holmes

The Aircraft Carrier Faces An Uncertain Future

Whither aircraft carriers? Some years ago a former colleague broke down carriers’ historic missions to discern whether they remain adequate unto...

06.03.2024 7

The National Interest

James Holmes

How Ukraine Can Keep America In the Fight: Win

Today marks the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Western support for the defenders seems to be flagging. That’s because the...

24.02.2024 10

The National Interest

James Holmes

How Many Attack Submarines Does the U.S. Navy Need? 

How many attack submarines does the U.S. Navy need?  The more, the better. But accomplishing the mission is the important thing, and the ability to...

19.02.2024 6

The National Interest

James Holmes

Time to Reinvent the U.S. Navy's Submarine Force to Fight China

The age of undersea exceptionalism is drawing to a close in naval warfare. Get used to it, submariners, and get ready. That’s the glum but bracing...

15.02.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

Does Joe Biden Have a Deterrence Problem?

Would you be deterred by an antagonist you believe to be incompetent, irresolute, or both? That question has become part of daily discourse about U.S....

12.02.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Has Missile Drama

The revolution in naval warfare continues. In fact, the revolution has gone into overdrive in this age of inexpensive, plentiful, lethal drones and...

05.02.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

India's Navy Has Arrived

Go Indian Navy!  True to its tradition of nonalignment, India has declined to join the U.S.-led effort to keep open shipping lanes in the Red Sea,...

29.01.2024 30

The National Interest

James Holmes

The U.S. Navy Is All About Warfighting and Combat Readiness

It’s all “warfighting,” all the time, for the next four years while Admiral Lisa Franchetti, the newly installed chief of naval operations (CNO)...

21.01.2024 7

The National Interest

James Holmes

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