Why today’s Navy minesweepers remind me of the ancient Melian Dialogue
Submarines and aviation get what they need, mine warfare suffers what it must.
I nearly turned the page when I saw an article in the November issue of Proceedings about the wretched state of the Navy minesweeping community. Yes, they lack enough hulls. Yes, they are neglected. Yes, no one else seems to care. That all has been true as long as I can remember.
So, I asked myself, what does the state of the U.S. Navy minesweeping community remind me of? Then it came to me: The Melian Dialogue in Thucydides. That is, re-stated in U.S. Navy terms: Submarines and aviation get what they need, mine warfare suffers what it must.
I nearly turned the page when I saw an article in the November issue of Proceedings about the wretched state of the Navy minesweeping community. Yes, they lack enough hulls. Yes, they are neglected. Yes, no one else seems to care. That all has been true as long as I can remember.
So, I asked myself, what does the state of the U.S. Navy minesweeping community remind me of? Then it came to me: The Melian Dialogue in Thucydides. That is, re-stated in U.S. Navy terms: Submarines and aviation get what they need, mine warfare suffers what it must.
Photo credit: U.S. Navy/Wikimedia Commons
More from Foreign Policy

Is Cold War Inevitable?
A new biography of George Kennan, the father of containment, raises questions about whether the old Cold War—and the emerging one with China—could have been avoided.

So You Want to Buy an Ambassadorship
The United States is the only Western government that routinely rewards mega-donors with top diplomatic posts.

Can China Pull Off Its Charm Offensive?
Why Beijing’s foreign-policy reset will—or won’t—work out.

Turkey’s Problem Isn’t Sweden. It’s the United States.
Erdogan has focused on Stockholm’s stance toward Kurdish exile groups, but Ankara’s real demand is the end of U.S. support for Kurds in Syria.