How America Lost Control of the Seas

“He who commands the sea has command of everything,” the ancient Athenian general Themistocles said. By that standard, the United States has command of very little.

America depends on ocean shipping. About 80 percent of its international trade by weight traverses the seas. The U.S. needs ships to deliver nearly 90 percent of its armed forces’ supplies and equipment, including fuel, ammunition, and food. Commercial shipyard capacity is essential for surge construction of warships and sealift-support ships that . . .