Renewing America’s Maritime Strength: A Necessity for National Security

As global tensions rise and new threats emerge, the United States must recommit to a strong and reliable maritime capability. The aggressive shipping expansion by China poses significant challenges to the United States and its allies, exposing vulnerabilities in maritime supply chains and creating the potential for rivals to pose risks through domestic waterways.

The Importance of the Jones Act

The Merchant Marine Act, commonly known as the Jones Act, is vital for defending American interests and sovereignty in the face of these challenges. June 2024 marked the anniversary of this foundational law and the establishment of America’s Merchant Marines. These institutions are essential for enabling our nation’s industrial and naval forces to protect global supply chains, military readiness, and homeland security.

China’s Maritime Ambitions

The Chinese Communist Party has long-recognized the importance of its maritime industry, funneling hundreds of billions of dollars in subsidies into its shipyards and shipping companies. China’s ambition to extend its influence and control over the global supply chain has had immediate effects. For example, the leading association for Europe’s shipbuilders has grimly declared that “without a fundamental change in shipbuilding policies, Europe will lose the capability to build seagoing merchant ships on any significant scale over the coming 10 years,” mainly due to China. Meanwhile, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has expanded its international presence into 100 ports globally, and built Chinese-made cargo cranes in U.S. ports, raising security concerns.

The Jones Act: A Pillar of American Maritime Strength

The Jones Act is fundamental to maintaining a fleet of American-built, -crewed, and -owned vessels, which are essential to our nation’s economy and serve as a bulwark against China’s expansionism. The act supports 650,000 American jobs, secures our domestic transportation from supply chain disruptions, and buffers against anti-competitive maneuvers from China. U.S. shipyards are currently busy building oceangoing and “brown water” (close to shore) vessels to meet our economic and national security needs. Without a trusted domestic maritime industry connecting Hawaii to California, Alaska to Washington state, Florida to Puerto Rico, and the lower 48 states to one another, we would be dangerously vulnerable.

Global Conflicts and the Importance of Maritime Security

The conflicts in Ukraine and the Red Sea are harsh reminders of how fragile the free movement of cargo can be. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its potential implications for the global supply and transport of grain have kept the world on edge since 2022. Today, the Yemeni Islamist Houthi movement’s continuous assault on international shipping through the Red Sea has caused commercial vessels to divert from that major channel and reroute around South Africa. This fighting force has fired upon American mariners aboard U.S.-flagged ships carrying vital cargo, as well as Israeli and British vessels, while Chinese ships have passed through unencumbered.

Military Readiness and the Jones Act

In addition to enabling American control over our supply chain, the Jones Act is critical to maintaining military readiness. Our armed forces count on barges and other U.S.-flagged vessels to transport military equipment between U.S. bases on our domestic waterways, and rely on tugboats to help Navy ships safely enter and exit U.S. ports. The Jones Act ensures that American vessels can perform these critical tasks, and that the United States maintains a pool of trained mariners for the military’s critical sealift needs.

Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost, the commander of U.S. Transportation Command, underscored this to Congress, remarking that the Jones Act and associated laws “work to ensure TRANSCOM has the necessary U.S.-flagged capability and U.S. merchant mariners ready to move sensitive defense materials during a national emergency.”

Protecting Homeland Security

The Jones Act is a vital asset for protecting our people and infrastructure from bad actors by limiting foreign vessels’ ability to roam our inland waterways and allowing the Coast Guard to safeguard our nation’s waterways more efficiently. Without the law, the Coast Guard’s already difficult mission would be even more complicated at a dangerous time.

It’s time for the American maritime industrial base to receive the national attention it deserves to ensure the strong defense and economic resilience this country demands. Protecting the 650,000 men and women of the U.S. maritime industry is just the beginning. In renewing our commitment to a robust maritime industry, we can confront emerging threats and safeguard our national security for generations to come.

We at the Herd Law Firm are proud to fight for seamen, maritime workers and passengers in all types of personal injury and death claims. As maritime personal injury attorneys located in northwest Houston, we never waver in our commitment to help these maritime workers, passengers, and their families when they are injured or mistreated.

7/26/2024