The development of the Soviet Navy since World War II

Abstract

This thesis is a study of the Soviet Navy since World War II. The fact that the Soviet Navy has, in the past thirty years, been transformed from a position of comparative naval insignificance to a naval power second only to that of the United States of America is, clearly, the most important naval development of the post war world and as such deserves description, explanation and evaluation. The account which follows seeks to describe this development. and to show to what extent it has - (a) been brought about by changes in Soviet strategic assessments of the importance of sea power; (b) altered the role of the Navy in Soviet military doctrine as enunciated by Soviet political, military and naval leaders; (c) provided the Soviet Navy with the means to carry out the roles assigned to it at various periods in the post war era. It also indicates the extent to which the geographical position of the Fleet areas and the limitations imposed on any branch of the armed services by the priorities of the political leadership have influenced the Navy's development and its capabilities. Chapters 1 and 2 establish the significance of the geographic handicaps impose0. on the Soviet Navy and provide an appreciation of the role of the navy in Soviet military doctrine prior to and in the immediate post World War II period. This is essential background for what follows. No sensible evaluation of the strength of the Soviet Navy can beattempted without appreciating the fact that its total strength is allocated to four widely dispersed fleet areas each of which has its point of egress to the high seas flanked by foreign powers belonging to adverse alliance systems. Equally no account of the changing roles of the Soviet Navy or explanation of its growth in terms of numbers or types of vessels available is complete without the realisation that, historically,primacy has been afforded the ground forces, with the navy playing the subordinate role of "loyal assistant". The extent to which this perception of the navy, as essentially a subordinate arm of service, has changed, both within the navy, within other branches of the armed services and within the political leadership of the Soviet Union, is a major concern of this thesis.