The announcement links the Golden Fleet to Theodore Roosevelt's Great White Fleet and the battleship as a visible symbol of national power. The earlier fleet's voyage around the world provides the historical reference for that symbolism. Naval deterrence and conflict management also pose a problem of recognition: when they work, no war occurs. Successful prevention can therefore pass unnoticed, while failed deterrence produces the visible crisis and the criticism that follows.
Notable Point · 28:03-30:03
Golden Fleet symbolism and the invisible work of deterrence
The Great White Fleet supplies a historical image of naval power, followed by the problem of recognizing deterrence when it prevents a war.