The Maritime Economic Concerns of Russia: Is it Gaining the Interests of a Coastal State?

This research memorandum is one in a series of papers stemming from CNA's Future Russian Navy project, which was requested by the Director of Naval Intelligence. In this paper, we examine the evolving maritime interests of the former Soviet Union and those of Russia, its principal heir. Until the 1960s, the Soviet Union acted as a coastal state, protecting its own territorial waters. It then built up its forces and emerged as a significant global maritime power in the late 1960s. Now Russia is returning to a coastal focus. We look at the reasons for this latest shift in focus -- namely, problems in Russia's oil and fishing industries -- and the way in which the Russian Navy's missions will likely change to reflect the nation's new economic imperatives.