Closing Sub Base Would Repeat Mistakes Of History

Friday, May 5, 2006

By Scott Bates, New London Day

May 22, 2005

The proposed closing of the U.S. Navy submarine base in Groton would deliver a devastating blow for America’s national security in the 21st century. The decision represents the triumph of accountants over Admirals and if left to stand, will represent one of the most short-sighted decisions in strategy since our naval disarmament on the eve of Pearl Harbor.

Those who advocate the closing of America’s homeport for nearly half of her submarine fleet, are demonstrating their contempt for the role of the sub service in the 21st century. They are making the simplistic assumption that since there is no more Soviet navy, there is less of a need for a sub service in the U.S. Navy. They couldn’t be more wrong.

The national security challenges that the United States will face in the 21st century all require a powerful submarine service that is capable of projecting force in all theaters at all times. Three threats to our security require a strong submarine fleet with global projection power. Those threats are the global war on terror, the rise of regional rogue powers and the emergence of a Chinese superpower.

In prosecuting the war on terror, the gathering of intelligence, stealthy strike and the ability to project force anywhere on the planet are essentials for victory. The submarine service delivers on all counts. The intelligence and electronic eavesdropping capability of subs was not widely known but was widely used during the Cold War and continues to this day. The newly commissioned Jimmy Carter is equipped to carry and deploy Special Forces in such as way as to provide little to no notice to terrorists. This capability could be an important tool in fighting Islamic extremists in maritime locales such as Indonesia and the southern Philippines.

The rise of regional rogue states is already a grave challenge to world peace, although it has been knocked from the headlines because of news from Iraq. While the US has been policing Iraq, North Korea’s Stalinist regime has built by all accounts, six to eight atomic bombs. Iran’s mullahs, who lead a nation of over seventy million people situated at the crossroads of the world’s energy supply lines, are on the brink of going nuclear. It should be remembered that U.S. Navy submarines fired the first shots, cruise missiles, of the Gulf War. In a future showdown with a rogue regional power, it would be best if the leaders of North Korea and Iran understood that underneath the seas, within sight of their shores, the United States Navy constantly stands watch, ready to drive them from power at the touch of a button. The sub service is our first line of defense against the gathering threat of these rogue regimes.

The greatest strategic challenge confronting the United States in the first half of the 21st century will be the growth of China as a superpower. Managing China’s rise effectively will make the difference between war and peace in the lives of our children and grandchildren. Chinese intentions are already becoming clear. Beijing has gone on a shopping spree buying up vast portions of the Russian Navy. The Chinese Navy has ordered two new destroyers armed with long range supersonic anti-ship missiles along with eight new Kilo 636 submarines armed with Russian wake homing torpedo technology. These ships will join the current Chinese force of over sixty submarines. On the drawing boards for completion by the end of this decade is the “Type 094” SSBN that can be fitted with 16 launch tubes for sea launched ballistic missiles capable of hitting the United States.

The Chinese Navy is currently at 400 fast attack missile, patrol and torpedo boats, with that number likely to multiply as fast as the Chinese economic growth rate in the years to come. This expanding naval capability coupled with China’s increasingly assertive foreign policy will pose a potential threat to America’s ability to guarantee open sea lanes in such strategic areas as the Taiwan Straits, the Straits of Mulucca and even the Sea of Japan. A United States Navy shorn of its submarine capability will be unable to successfully guarantee the open sea lands that have assured our allies and maintained our prosperity since the end of World War II. It is essential for world peace in the mid-21st century that China be successfully integrated into the community of nations. This can best happen if the more extreme members of their leadership group realize that the United States Navy’s position is so strong as to be unassailable. A strong U.S. Navy will deter any sane leader in Beijing from every getting near a conflict situation with the United States or our allies in the Pacific.

In the decades ahead, a strong submarine service has an indispensable role to play in assuring the security of the United States. To fight the global war on terror, contain rogue nuclear powers and deter the ambitions of a Chinese superpower, we need the submarine force of the United States Navy.

To close the U.S. Navy Submarine Base in Groton, Connecticut is to hobble our submarine force. The signal to young officers contemplating a career in the service is that subs are dispensable. The disruption to the skilled workforce that supports the sub service is incalculable. The impact of the closure on our future national security posture would be profound. The BRAC can send a strong signal that they will put America’s long term security needs ahead of short term budget savings by reconsidering their decision on the Sub Base.

Scott bates is Senior Fellow for National Security for the non-partisan Center for National Policy based in Washington, D.C. He is a resident of Stonington, CT.