Andrew Forbes

Offshore oil and gas installations security: an international perspective

may detract from the editors’ attempt to provide a broad overview. The first of these is recognised by the editors in the final chapter; there is little information provided regarding the monitoring and/or enforcement of MPAs at either the federal or state level. For those at the initial stages of setting up MPA networks, focusing on appropriate legislation, network design and stakeholder consultation, this may not at the forefront of planning; however, it should be a key consideration. Other countries could have hugely benefited from a discussion of Australian experiences in this area. Similarly, more information on the process by which MPA locations and categorisations were chosen at federal and state level could have assisted those at the initial stages of the process in other countries. What were the bio-geo-physical considerations? How did stakeholders contribute to the process? Last but not least, some of the MPAs described have been in place for 20 years or more. Have they been successful, and if so, in what ways? Many of the case studies identified the challenges, but far fewer noted the reasons for success. Big, Bold and Blue is a substantial overview of Australia’s experiences with MPAs. To be sure, there are some weaknesses, but this is always likely to be the case when trying to present a broad-ranging overview of such a topic. Nevertheless, the book provides a valuable and absorbing window into some of the key governance challenges that those setting up MPA networks, around the globe, are likely to face.

International maritime security law

prepared to go, and what the true objectives would be. Chapters Six to Nine move from analysis of strategic debates into the actual procurement of armed merchant cruisers. As suitable platforms for applying a naval blockade on merchant shipping, planners had to consider supplementing the costs of arming and operating Armed Merchant Cruisers while presumably still in the ownership of the shipping lines. Questions such as whether war-risk on insurance rates would apply feed into a general sense that war really was about economic costs, as much as victories on the battlefield. Finally, Cobb analyses the effectiveness or otherwise of these plans and the actual vehicles of blockade, the armed merchantmen, and their use in the actual theatres of the Great War of 1914–1918. Usefully, Cobb has included a biographical listing in two appendixes; given the number of planners, strategists, politicians and naval officers that Cobb draws on in this analysis, the listing is an essential supplement. Overall, this book adds to current discussions about international laws of conflict at sea. Whether naval practitioner, professional historian or a less academically inclined reader, the contents of Cobb’s book are generally accessible to all with an interest in naval history. What the reader will soon realise is that the real focus of the book is the characters – the people that are really being examined. For it is the words of naval officers and politicians of the day that Cobb relies upon for the bulk of opinions that aid the researcher to try to answer the major questions of this study. Yet, Cobb has considered important elements that are often missing in naval discussions. As seen in the initial reaction to piracy off the Horn of Africa, the protection of merchant shipping was not regarded as a core function of navies long blinked by Cold War strategic thinking. Cobb reminds us that strategic focus is determined by the context, which itself is a product of the cultural mindset of the strategists.

Maritime Security and the Law of the Sea

Review(s) of: Maritime Security and the Law of the Sea, by Natalie Klein, Oxford University Press, 2011, xxvi, 350p, ISBN 9780199566532

The CSCAP Study Group on Implications of Naval Enhancement in the Asia-Pacific Region

Tthe Study Group on the Naval Enhancement in the Asia-Pacific Region looked into issues arising from the increase incapacities/capabilities of maritime security forces, both navies and coastguards in the Asia-Pacific region. Important changes in the roles of these forces were evaluated and studied for benefits and potential risks. The benefits flowing from information sharing, interoperability and operational cooperation and measures to mitigate of risks that arise from mutual mistrust and suspicion were identified.