Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 43:13-43:38

A renewed South American naval race would draw in the United States

Domestic South American battleship construction in the late 1920s would not remain regional because the United States would protect its position in the hemisphere.

London Naval TreatiesNaval Industrial CapacitySouth American Naval Arms RaceUS Navy
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Question

How would a new South American battleship race affect the London Naval Treaty?

Short answer

It would trigger more construction, especially from a United States determined to remain the leading naval power in the Americas.

Notes

The question imagines South American states restarting both a naval arms race and domestic battleship production in 1929. The United States would respond with additional construction because it would not accept a challenge to its leading position in the Americas. That reaction would complicate the London treaty framework and increase building beyond the regional competitors themselves. The escalation mechanism turns an apparently local naval race into an international one.