Tuesday 25 November, 13.30
Old Library, All Souls
Sea Control Re-dux - Why the global operating system is a sea-based phenomenon and why the sea matters to global stability
Dr Sean Andrews
The oceans are the invisible infrastructure of modern civilisation—the global operating system upon which trade, energy, data, and climate stability depend. More than 80 percent of world commerce moves by sea, and over 95 percent of international internet traffic flows through undersea cables. Yet the maritime domain remains fundamentally anarchic: beyond the domestic seas, it is a space where states, corporations, and non-state actors contest resources, assert coercive power, or exploit regulatory gaps. Grey-zone operations, piracy, unregulated deep-sea mining, and environmental degradation reveal the fragility of these commons.
This seminar, “Sea Control Re-dux,” revisits the classical concept of sea control - from Mahan and Corbett to the drone age - to argue its enduring relevance for strategic stability and global prosperity. It examines how all powers - great and small must adapt maritime strategies to secure sea lines of communication, protect critical digital infrastructure, and steward the marine environment. By highlighting the ocean’s centrality to economic flows, climate regulation, and human security, the seminar challenges audiences to recognise the sea not merely as a battlefield or resource but as the connective tissue of the international order—and a domain that matters to everyone.
Dr Sean Andrews is a recently retired naval Captain with extensive operational and command experience. His research centres on the evolving character and strategic utility of naval power and maritime security. Dr Andrews is currently the Five Eyes Fellow at the Royal Navy Strategic Studies Centre. Most recently, he was the Senior Maritime Fellow at the National Security College, Australian National University, and a Visiting Fellow at SST:CCW. He is an Associate Member of King’s College London. Previously, Dr Andrews served as Director of the Sea Power Centre – Australia and founded the Indo-Pacific’s Six Nation Maritime Working Group.
Seminars at 13.30, Old Library, All Souls
All are welcome, no need to book.
