While the Navy is steaming into a new world where it will once again be challenged on the seas by rival maritime forces, the new challenges will not be a rote rerun of the United States\u2019 struggles for power against the Soviet Union during the Cold War, the Navy\u2019s top officer said Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although the recently released National Defense Strategy<\/a> emphasizes countering an ascendant China<\/a> and resurgent Russia<\/a>, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson<\/a> said the layout of the globe has changed in the past 25 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since that time, maritime traffic has increased 400 percent and fueled a doubling of gross domestic product worldwide, Richardson said during an event at the Heritage Foundation think tank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Nearly all internet traffic crosses the world via undersea cables, and melting polar ice caps offer new resources and create new sea lanes, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA balanced strategy, a balanced strategic approach, is more important than ever,\u201d Richardson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meeting these upcoming needs will require the Navy to focus on several things, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It must grow toward its 355-ship<\/a> goal, while also modernizing existing ships, an effort that will involve advances in lasers and unmanned systems, among other things, Richardson said.<\/p>\n\n\n