This volume is the proceedings of the eighth Sea Power Conference held in Sydney over the period 7-9 October 2013 in conjunction with the International Fleet Review. The conference was designed to capitalise on the presence of many foreign navies in Sydney for the Review. The 21st century has been described as a maritime century as much as it is an Asian century, due to the pervasive nature of global sea trade and the predominantly maritime environment of Indo Pacific Asia. The theme of the conference was to examine the contemporary utility of navies as tools of statecraft, from hard and soft power perspectives.
It also explored, in a dedicated session, the notion of 'a maritime school of strategic thought' a debate that emerged in Australia in 2012, ahead of the promulgation of a revised National Security Statement and Defence White Paper.
