Sonha Gomez

Sep 30, 2024 | usni.org | Sonha Gomez |Joe Greco |Salvatore R. Mercogliano

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt called the U.S. Merchant Marine the nation’s “fourth arm of defense,” reflecting its critical contributions during peace and war—from enabling U.S. seaborne trade to providing logistics support for military contingencies to steaming into harm’s way. Unfortunately, today’s Merchant Marine is underfunded and undermanned. The current state of the U.S. Merchant Marine fleet is a vulnerability.

Sep 30, 2024 | usni.org | Sonha Gomez |Salvatore R. Mercogliano |Matt Forti

The recent Houthi-led attacks on commercial shipping have again highlighted a reality of war at sea: Merchant mariners are on the same frontline as their naval cousins—except without defensive weapon systems, extensive compartmentalization, and abundant manpower for damage control. Operation Prosperity Guardian, the multinational security initiative in the Red Sea, provides an excellent opportunity to consider what future awaits the U.S. Merchant Marine in contested waters.