William "Bill" Combes | Baltic Defence College (original) (raw)

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Papers by William "Bill" Combes

International Centre for Defence and Security, 2022

The sixth brief in the “Russia’s War in Ukraine” series concerns the war at sea. Captain USN (re... more The sixth brief in the “Russia’s War in Ukraine” series concerns the war at sea.

Captain USN (ret) William “Bill” Combes, the Director of the Department of Leadership and Management Studies at the Baltic Defence College in Tartu, Estonia, examines the activities and the role of Russia’s Black Sea Navy since 2014, and particularly after 24 February 2022, including the blockade against Ukraine, as well as Ukraine’s naval and coastal defence.

He assesses that the loss of the air defence and command functions associate with the flagship Moskva and the damage to other ships that carry land-attack missiles has eroded Russia’s ability to maintain sea control and reduced its naval-based strike capabilities. He concludes that what Ukraine really needs is direct naval assistance.

Journal on Baltic Security

The History and Geopolitics of the World's Oceans is a book that everyone should read. The author... more The History and Geopolitics of the World's Oceans is a book that everyone should read. The author, retired U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis, is well known beyond naval and maritime circles. Following a long and distinguished naval career, the pinnacle of which included serving as the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO1, he was selected as the Dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, a position he still holds today. It is apparent that Stavridis is passionate about the three interrelated disciplines that intersect throughout the work, which are captured in the title, and that have defined his extraordinary expertise as a naval historian, geopolitical strategist and, perhaps most importantly, sailor. The historical background discussed in each chapter leaves you yearning to learn more. The geopolitical implications and recommendations for the future of American seapower2 are well reasoned and insightful. By making the narrative personal in relaying his extensive professional experiences and deep involvement in the subject matter as a sailor and a senior operational leader and military diplomat, everything is tied together. Stavridis deftly deals with the oceans and four seas-the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian and Arctic and the Mediterranean, South China, Caribbean and "Outlaw", respectively-each with their own chapter. From the outset, the interconnected nature of the one body of salt water that connects the economies of all nations is stressed-"the sea is one" (p. 2). He starts with the Pacific, the "mother of all oceans". In this chapter, he highlights the historical and economic reasons why the U.S. Navy has, since the Second World War, had a majority of its forces in the Pacific. This is particularly true if you include the U.S. Navy's presence in the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman and the Horn of Africa as connected to the broader Indo-Asia-Pacific region, a term that is now included in U.S. strategic documents.3 From the Eurocentric perspective, the second chapter on the Atlantic and the fourth chapter on the Mediterranean Sea highlight why a "pivot" or "rebalance" to the Pacific is not likely to change the U.S. Navy's continued involvement in the first ocean and seas it sailed on its homeland's front lawn. In addition 1 See Stavridis (2014) for an insightful personal account of the book author's experiences as the first U.S. Navy Admiral Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. 2 Throughout this review, "seapower" is used to refer to maritime forces and capabilities and a nation that possesses seapower. See the later discussion. 3 For example, A Cooperative Strategy for 21

Europe, Small Navies and Maritime Security; Balancing Traditional Roles and Emergent Threats in the 21st Century, 2019

Chapter 9: Maritime security strategies for very small states: the case of the Baltic states in ... more Chapter 9: Maritime security strategies for very small states: the case of the Baltic states

in McCabe, Sanders, Speller (eds.), Europe, Small Navies and Maritime Security; Balancing Traditional Roles and Emergent Threats in the 21st Century, 1st Edition; Routledge; 2019.

This book seeks to identify and address gaps in our understanding of maritime security and the role of small navies in Europe.
The majority of Europe’s navies are small, yet they are often called upon to address a complex array of traditional and non-traditional threats. This volume examines the role of small navies within the European security architecture, by discussing areas of commonality and difference between navies, and arguing that it is not possible to fully understand either maritime strategy or European security without taking into account the actions of small navies. It contains a number of case studies that provide an opportunity to explore how different European states view the current security environment and how naval policy has undergone significant changes within the lifetime of the existing naval assets. In addition, the book examines how maritime security and naval development in Europe might evolve, given that economic forecasts will likely limit the potential procurement of ‘larger’ naval assets in the future, which means that European states will increasingly have to do more with less in the maritime domain.
This book will be of much interest to students of maritime strategy, naval power, strategic studies, European politics and international relations in general.

ICDS, 2019

Authors: Lange, Heinrich; Combes, Bill; Jermalavičius, Tomas; Lawrence, Tony As part of its rene... more Authors: Lange, Heinrich; Combes, Bill; Jermalavičius, Tomas; Lawrence, Tony

As part of its renewed focus on collective defence and deterrence, NATO is re-engaging with the maritime domain and navies are seeing greater levels of interest and investment. The states that surround the Baltic Sea have also begun to respond to new and rediscovered challenges to their maritime security, but more could be done individually and collectively.
In the period following the Cold War, as NATO and its partners engaged in crisis response operations, the focus on land and air forces led to the side-lining of maritime roles and a tendency to neglect the maritime domain—a situation that has come to be known as ‘sea blindness’. NATO’s post-Crimea defence and deterrence agenda has brought renewed focus to the maritime domain and a recognition of the need to refresh partly forgotten naval skills and concepts. In response, for example, NATO’s 2018 collective defence exercise Trident Juncture included a major naval component.
But more remains to be done, including in the Baltic region where the risk of maritime hybrid actions and the need to plan for wartime scenarios unlike those of the Cold War present a new set of challenges to local and other NATO navies. These challenges are perhaps best addressed through a cooperative regional approach. Our report, written in cooperation with our research partner, the Baltic Defence College, studies some of the issues related to maritime defence and deterrence in our region and makes recommendations for NATO and for the states that surround the Baltic Sea.

As nations determine how to best balance their use of scarce national resources in today’s comple... more As nations determine how to best balance their use of scarce national resources in today’s complex, interconnected and sometimes troubled global economy, it is vitally important that they make the correct security and economic decisions for their citizens and national economic, political and social institutions and interests. Decisions made today to husband national resources will have follow-on repercussions on the future stream of those very same resources. It is costly to invest in naval and military capability; in the long run, it may also be costlier not to.

This paper will define the freedom of the high seas and why these freedoms are important to a nation’s security, diplomatic, social and economic goals. While it may not be possible to reduce the value of naval and supporting military capability and infrastructure required to ensure these goals are met to concrete transactional costs and benefits; objective and subjective benefits will be hypothesized – economic, diplomatic, political, and military value. It will explore the need for strategic alliances between nations as each determines the price it is able or willing to pay for a maritime force to safeguard those goals. Finally, it will make strategic recommendations on how to best protect those freedoms.