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282 AUSTRALIAN MARITIME ISSUES 2006: SPC-A ANNUAL
The Art of War and Military Aspects of Maritime Strategy
Sea control, sea denial and maritime power projection
The first of the three divisions of maritime strategy to be analysed with Sun Tzu’s
themes is the military, or warfighting component. This component is divided into
three sections: sea control, 38 sea denial and power projection. Sea control involves
the gaining of control of a specific section of the maritime area for a specific amount
of time, 39 and is usually required in order to conduct other missions on the ocean. The
concept of sea denial is a component of sea control, 40 and is a strategy that aims to stop
an opponent using the sea for their purposes. 41 Finally, maritime power projection,
or simply power projection, is the use of maritime and military assets from the sea to
affect events ashore. 42 But projecting power ashore involves operations in the littoral
environment, which is a complex mix of jurisdictions, environments and threats, and
exposes maritime forces to additional military strategies.
These three general concepts figure prominently in current maritime strategies
and doctrines of most nations, and three dissimilar examples are the US, China and
Australia. Contemporary US strategy focuses on presence to prevent war and the
need for littoral dominance. 43 The current US maritime approach is enshrined in ‘Sea
Power 21’, which concentrates on a strategy of achieving sea control in order to project
power ashore. 44 Australia’s approach is marked by an emphasis on sea denial /sea
control of its maritime approaches and an ability to operate small force projection
overseas. 45 The example of China provides a different concept in its ‘active offshore
defence’ strategy 46 that can be summarised as defensive sea control over defined
geographical areas of the coast. The common trend in most maritime strategies is an
emphasis on control and power projection in the littoral environment.
Strengths and weaknesses
Advanced maritime states have placed much emphasis on technology to carry out
the military roles of sea control, sea denial and power projection, 47 to the point where
some describe the US military as almost ‘omnicompetent’. 48 But the strategy of these
advanced countries also includes casualty limitation and ‘cautious exit strategies’. 49 It
is therefore likely that most opponents will not challenge such modern maritime forces
at their strengths, and will instead attack weaknesses. 50 Because of these factors, The
Art of War has much relevance for military roles, as will be explained using the tenets
of Avoiding Strength, Manipulation and Foreknowledge.