The UK : a maritime Power ?
1- The UK economy relies on the sea (a maritime economy)
Doc. 1- The 5th largest EEZ in the world (6,805,586 km2)
Doc. 2 - "Maritime Nation": a campaign to raise awareness of the vital contribution of the U.K. maritime sector
Doc. 3 - U.K.'s maritime economy: some figures (2019)
Doc. 4 - Top 15 container ports in Europe (2019) / in the UK (2015)
LoLo = Lift On / Lift Off
Doc. 5 - Oil and gas fields in the North Sea
Doc. 6 - Hornsea Wind Farm, in the North Sea off the coast of England: one of the largest wind farms in the world
Doc. 7-
It is well-known that the UK had the greatest maritime-based empire the world has seen with a navy to match. The question is : what existential features does the UK have to suggest it remains a state with maritime interest today ?
Geography cannot be ignored. As an island archipelago the fact is that what the UK cannot produce must in most cases come by sea and this is also true of what the UK wishes to send abroad. The UK’s coastline is over 10,500 miles long and contains some 600 ports of various sizes. The English Channel is the world’s second busiest international seaway. UK ports move more than 500 million tons of freight annually including : 5 million containers units ; 7 million road goods vehicles ; 240 million tons of liquid bulk ; 7 million tons of Liquefied Natural Gas ; 125 million tons of dry bulk and 25 million passengers : overall, 92% of UK international trade moves by sea as does 24% of its internal trade.
MARTIN Christopher, The UK as a Medium Maritime Power in the 21st century: Logistics for influence, Palgrave Macmillan, 2019 (new ed.).
2- The U.K. still plays a strategic role at sea: a policeman of the oceans ?
Doc. 8 - Visit the website of the powerful Royal Navy : https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/
Doc. 9 - Aircraft carriers: symbols of Sea power
The UK has 2 aircraft carriers currently under construction. The Queen Elisabeth, due to become operational in 2020, and Prince of Wales, due on 2022.
Doc. 10- Recent deployments of the Royal Navy
Please connect to: https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/
Doc. 11 - British military bases in the world
Britain’s 9 strategically located military bases around the world provide Power Projection and help secure the Trading Routes on which European economies depend. (…)
As you can see on this Chart, old and new powers are building military bases to project power over key maritime & terrestrial routes. India is challenging China’s silk Route, while Russia is challenging China’s South China Sea dominance. (…) The British military bases are not simply superbly located and useful in case of war. They project power and deny potential disrupter access to strategic passages fro trade. That provides the security environment for economic growth and low costs of transport & insurance.
The UK plans to open up its second Mideast base in Oman. The UK’s New Omani Base shows that the UK is seeking to reestablish itself as an important economic and military power in the Indian Ocean Region.
Doc. 12 - Anti-piracy missions
Since 2008 there has been a high number of attacks by pirates off the coast of Somalia on ships transiting the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean. Armed gangs have been hijacking vessels and demanding ransoms for the release of both vessels and crew. These attacks affect the peace and security of the region.
In response, the UK is playing a lead role in international operations aimed at stopping the pirates, and providing humanitarian and development assistance to Somalia.
In order to ensure pirates are stopped, and that the shipping and travel industry can conduct its business as safely as possible, the UK is …
Doc. 13 - The UK plans to open up its second Mideast base in Oman
The UK’s New Omani Base shows that the UK is seeking to reestablish itself as an important economic and military power in the Indian Ocean Region.
3- The limitations / weaknesses of British Sea Power
Doc. 14 - Several exclusive economic zones are disputed
Doc. 15 - Tensions between French & British fishermen
The France v Britain scallop war goes much deeper than Brexit with nets
The Channel clashes dredge up historic and environmental issues – and reverse our usual fury about the ‘pillaging’ of British fish
Wed 29 Aug 2018 16.00 BSTLast modified on Mon 3 Feb 2020 12.05 GMT
Forty French fishing boats attack five British boats in the Channel. Stones and smoke bombs are thrown. Rude words are exchanged in two languages. The British retreat.
Gove backs UK scallop fishermen who clashed with French rivals
Similar incidents have been happening for 15 years – or arguably for the last 900 years. The rights and wrong are complicated. Yesterday evening the French boats were undoubtedly the aggressors. They put to sea not in order to fish, but to harass the English and Scottish boats that had entered “their waters”.
It was foolhardy of the French fishermen, but they do have reasons to be exasperated. The latest outbreak of the Baie de la Seine scallop war should be seen in the context of Brexit and the deep uncertainties and exaggerated expectations encouraged by simplistic UK plans to reclaim “our seas” and “our fish”.
Ironies abound. In the this dispute, British boats are asserting their right to fish in French waters even when they are closed to French trawlers. This right depends on EU rules, but pre-dates the EU fishing policy.
In any case, the row is not just about France v Britain. It is also about Big Boats v Small Boats, and the ecological damage caused by modern methods of industrial-scale fishing.
First, some facts. The clashes took place in “French waters” – that is to say about 15 miles from the French coast at a point where the Channel is about 100 miles wide, well beyond any possible legal definition of British waters. There were 40 French boats and five British – but the French boats were tiny and the British boats were large.
Since so much has been said about European boats “pillaging” British fishing grounds, it is worth dwelling on the fact that this was one of the many cases in which UK-registered boats depend on access to “European waters”. The scallop grounds off the Norman coast are among the richest in the world. The scallops – or coquilles Saint-Jacques – dredged by UK boats are mostly sold back to the continental market.
Under the terms of the common fisheries policy, British boats do have a right to dredge scallops up to 12 miles from the French shoreline. The French fishermen have never disputed that right.
Source: The Daily Mail.
Doc. 16 - Offshore oil and Scottish nationalism
Scotland's National Party poster (fighting for Scottish independence)
Doc. 17 - Cover of a book written by a British geopolitician
Doc. 18 - useful data to compare the U.K. with other nations
En exploitant des informations issus des documents ci-dessus, complétez la légende de ce croquis intitulé "Is the UK still a maritime power?"
1) The UK economy relies on the sea (= a maritime economy)
a) 95% of imports and exports to the UK are transported by sea
...... (symbole à choisir). main British maritime ports
.... (symbole à choisir) ........... (2e idée permettant de préciser le poids de la mer dans les échanges commerciaux du RU)
...... (symbole à choisir) ........... (3e idée)
b) A large marine area including many natural resources
(intégrez ici quelques idées - avec un symbole pour chaque idée- montrant que le RU dispose d'une vaste zone maritime et que celle-ci regorge de ressources à présenter)
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2) The UK still plays a crucial and strategic role at sea : a policeman of the oceans ?
a) The British Navy: a powerful navy!
(proposez ici quelques idées - avec un symbole pour chaque idée - mettant en évidence le poids de la Marine britannique)
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b) The UK is able to intervene quickly anywhere in the world!
(même principe)
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3) The limitations / weaknesses of British maritime power
Ici, je vous laisse réfléchir à l'intitulé des sous-parties et aux idées qui pourraient être exploitées pour montrer les faiblesses de cette puissance maritime britannique!