NAVY
Share
The Shkval question: how an old Soviet torpedo entered the Hormuz war debate
One of the more unusual weapons to re-emerge in discussion of the current Gulf crisis is the Soviet-designed VA-111 Shkval, a supercavitating torpedo whose speed once made it a subject of intense Western interest. Its Iranian counterpart, widely identified as…
A Tale of Two Navies: France sends a Flotilla to Hormuz while Britain struggles to deploy a single warship.
When the government of France announced that it would dispatch a naval task force to safeguard shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the move carried a familiar echo of Gaullist strategic instinct: protect trade routes, demonstrate resolve, and signal that…
Ukraine claims disabling strike on Kalibr-capable frigate in Novorossiysk
Ukraine has struck the Russian Black Sea Fleet frigate Admiral Essen in the port of Novorossiysk, according to Ukrainian security sources and open-source analysts who reviewed post-strike satellite imagery. The ship is assessed to have sustained damage severe enough to…
US Submarine Sinks Iranian Frigate Dena in Indian Ocean
A U.S. Navy submarine torpedoed and sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean on 4 March 2026, in an incident that U.S. officials said marked a rare return of submarine-launched torpedo warfare against a surface combatant. The…
HMS Dragon: Royal Navy Destroyer Heads to Cyprus Amid Rising Tensions
In the early hours of a warm Mediterranean morning, the familiar calm of the Akrotiri peninsula was punctured by the buzz of an approaching drone. Within moments, it exploded on the perimeter of RAF Akrotiri, sending a plume of smoke…
Can Europe’s nuclear deterrent remain credible without US certainty?
Europe’s nuclear deterrence debate has sharpened as officials and analysts examine whether Britain and France can continue to provide a credible nuclear backstop in a less certain security environment. The immediate trigger has been a broader reassessment of deterrence in…
Forging the Future: A New Era for British Naval Shipbuilding
On a crisp February morning in Fife, amid the rhythmic cadence of hammers and the scent of fresh steel, two milestones in British shipbuilding were reached that deserve wider attention. At Babcock’s Rosyth yard in Scotland, the future HMS Active…
Washington Tightens the Noose: Ford Heads East as Iran Rejects US Red Lines
Washington’s military posture towards Iran hardened on Thursday as a second US aircraft carrier steamed towards the Middle East, air power in theatre reached levels not seen since the opening phase of the Iraq war, and negotiators left Geneva with…
NATO rehearses Baltic amphibious landing near Kiel amid renewed focus on Kaliningrad and sea lanes
NATO troops have staged an amphibious landing exercise on Germany’s Baltic coast, close to the port city of Kiel, in a drill involving roughly 3,000 personnel and forming part of the wider Steadfast Dart 2026 programme. The beach-assault phase took…
Kremlin Calls Shadow Fleet Seizures ‘Piracy’ and Threatens Naval Response
The war in Ukraine has long since escaped the trenches of Donbas and the missile-scarred cities of the Black Sea coast. Sanctions, sabotage, cyber operations and energy coercion have transformed it into something broader: a systemic contest between Russia and…