The MOC (Maritime Operations Center) is an online journal produced by the Center for Maritime Strategy. It engages in critical analysis of foreign affairs and defense issues, situating subjects within their wider implications and relation to the maritime domain.
Authors interested in submitting their work to The MOC should email Nick Weising at nweising@navyleague.org and follow the submission guidelines here.
Whizkids, Warriors, and the Strategy Gap
November 5, 2026
By
John Wills
With the election of President John F. Kennedy in 1960, the prospect of institutional change was extended across many facets and levels of American bureaucracy, especially in the realms of defense and foreign policy. Nowhere was that change more abrupt, or more consequential, than at the Pentagon. Kennedy’s choice for Secretary of Defense (SECDEF), Robert […]
Are Flying Boats Relevant Again?
November 3, 2026
By
Robert Jackson
Whether it’s changing aircraft carrier designs or bringing back battleships, President Trump’s interest in returning to a bygone era of naval development is clear, but there may be one relic that is worth bringing back. Seaplanes were produced by the thousands in World War Two. Their roles included air-sea rescue, reconnaissance, anti-submarine warfare, bombing, cargo […]
The Navy Cannot Cancel a Command it Cannot Reach
October 29, 2026
By
Burak Oktenli
As artificial intelligence is implemented into naval operations, the authority to act must have limits that survive communications failure. Imagine an unmanned surface vessel conducting a maritime surveillance mission. Its onboard software has received a valid instruction to distribute sensor information through a designated network. Hours later, a change in the operational picture leads a […]
Shipbuilding’s Missing Workforce Is Choosing Something Else
October 27, 2026
By
LT Gary Kim, Luke Tierney
Overall Landscape Last month in USNI Proceedings, I argued that no amount of capital will rebuild the U.S. fleet without a rebuilt shipbuilding workforce, and laid out a plan built on pay reform, training infrastructure, and modern facilities. That plan solves for retention: how to motivate the tradesmen already on the deck plate. However, that […]
A Naval Coastal Warfare Renaissance to Solve Littoral Targeting
October 22, 2026
By
CAPT (ret.) Chris Rawley, USN
Thousands of harbors, bays, and estuaries dot the world’s coastlines, with many of them located in the vicinity of strategically important choke points. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are unprepared to defend nearshore areas from modern weapons systems while targeting emerging threats around them, putting future littoral operations at risk. The next evolution of […]
Japan’s Push for Unmanned Naval Forces Doesn’t Solve the Personnel Problem
October 20, 2026
By
Lukas Krutz
In fiscal year 2023, the Japanese Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) recruited 9,959 people, just 51 percent of their 19,598-person target, according to Nippon, citing Japan’s Ministry of Defense. In another report, the Japanese Ministry of Defense (MOD) illustrates how the number of applications to the Self-Defense Forces fell by about 40 percent between fiscal 2014 and […]
Washington’s Counter-Mine Wakeup Call
October 15, 2026
By
Logan Rolleigh, Ryan Brobst, Jordan Ross
The Islamic Republic of Iran delivered a wakeup call to the U.S. Navy regarding the service’s ability to clear mines. The still-contested Strait of Hormuz demonstrates that mine clearing under fire is a slow, risky process.The mission served as a litmus test for the Navy’s capabilities. While some systems proved effective, improvement and scaling are […]
Underwater Drone Threats Are Already Here. America Isn’t Ready.
October 13, 2026
By
Matej Cernosek
In December 2025, an explosion erupted beside a Russian Kilo-class submarine docked inside the heavily defended Novorossiysk Naval Base. Ukraine said one of its underwater drones had penetrated the harbor and struck the submarine, describing the operation as the first successful attack of its kind. While Russia disputed the extent of the damage, the attack […]
The Illusion of the Fortress: How Shipbuilding Became the Beltway’s Most Controversial Foreign Policy Issue
October 8, 2026
By
Austin Gray, Stephen Rodriguez
Throughout the month of May, as the Navy’s top leaders trod dutifully up to Capitol Hill to pitch their ambitious shipbuilding plan, they faced a new adversary. They were requesting a record $65.8 billion specifically for shipbuilding. But shipbuilding’s staunchest supporters in Congress – members from Mississippi, Maine and maritime industrial districts are typically giddy […]
America’s Logistics Blind Spot Runs Right Through the Middle of Nowhere
October 6, 2026
By
Kyle Ashley
While global rivals spend billions carving out novel maritime shortcuts through the melting ice of the Arctic—with Russia and China aggressively operationalizing the Northern Sea Route to bypass southern bottlenecks—and while Washington routinely projects staggering military force halfway across the planet to secure distant foreign choke points like the Strait of Hormuz, American supply chain […]
China’s Port Investments in Latin America Are About Leverage, Not Just Trade
October 1, 2026
By
Anthony Gaudiuso
Discussion about Chinese-backed ports in Latin America, usually includes one particular worry: what if a regular shipping dock turns into a Chinese navy base someday? While it’s worth keeping an eye on, when a company builds and operates a major port, it doesn’t just win a business deal. It gets control over a big part […]
Systems & Submarines- The Case for Evolving Stealth
September 29, 2026
By
Jack Lindstrom
Intro The Jilin-1 satellites rest at the edge of space, utilized by a Chinese research team to track an F-22 through cloud cover, while Chinese scientists watch Starlink’s radio traffic signals to spot a stealth fighter’s forward-scatter shadow. Stealth, designed to enable a prior form of invisible operations in the air, has been unveiled through […]
