Call number: LD2668 .T4 1986 H44 / Master of Arts / History

Call number: LD2668 .T4 1986 M63 / Master of Arts / History

Through the Freedom of Navigation Program, established in 1979, the United States exercises diplomatic and military options for disputing maritime claims it judges to be inconsistent with customary international law and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Yet, despite the United States’ universal commitment to freedom of navigation and the law of the sea, it has behaved inconsistently from 1979-2013. This dissertation examines the variation and asks under what conditions the United States demonstrates its refusal to acquiesce to maritime claims—either by issuing a diplomatic protest or driving a warship through the disputed waters. This dissertation introduces a new dataset of every coastal state in the world over this 34-year period, coding each type of maritime claim made by every coastal state in the world, whether the United States disputes that particular claim, and whether the United States takes some kind of diplomatic or operational action to dispute it. The mixed-method analysis proceeds with a large-n quantitative analysis that sets up a qualitative case study on the Strait of Hormuz. The dissertation begins and concludes with a discussion of current conditions in the South China Sea and the United States activity in this disputed region. This study finds that territorial and usage claims are twice as strongly correlated with operational assertions as a response than diplomatic protests. More specifically, coastal states that require foreign ships to obtain permission prior to entering their territorial sea are most highly correlated with operational assertions. When the United States disputes a maritime claim, military powers and wealthy states are no more likely to receive Freedom of Navigation operations (FONOPS) than others. Moreover, bilateral trade relationships and polity type hardly seem to matter. Similarly, neither the number of ships nor diplomatic representation increases the likelihood of FONOPS. Rather, a coastal state’s possession of nuclear weapons significantly increases the likelihood of receiving an operational assertion—especially if that states has made a declaration upon ratification of UNCLOS.

Puerto Rico has been a United States territory since 1898. Since then, our identity and culture has been threatened by the impositions of the colonizer. The so-called “identity crisis” caused by the relationship with the U.S. government, is felt not only at a personal level, but also in our economy, politics and sociability. With the theme Decolonizing Architecture I explore our condition of colony, the struggles of the Puerto Rican people in favor of our emancipation and the role of architecture and memory to transcend our insular circumstance. My thesis focuses on the island of Vieques, a Puerto Rican Municipality that was invaded in 1941 by the U.S. Navy. The navy expropriated 2/3 of the island. The East was used as a weapons training facility and the West for ammunition storage. The Viequense community, of approximately 10,000 inhabitants, was left in the middle of training zones for war. In 2003, after more than five decades of relentless bombings and the many protests and civil disobedience acts against it from the local community, Puerto Ricans from the main island and in the diaspora, the navy withdrew from Vieques. Currently the previous Live Impact Area on the East side of Vieques is inaccessible due to cleanup from contamination but the land can be used to provide a renewable source of energy that would benefit the municipality. The intervention in the West is located on the former Naval Ammunition Storage Detachment where hundreds of abandoned bunkers are located. These bunkers will be rehabilitated to promote eco-tourism, to provide a space in memory of those who have died at the hands of the navy, and to commemorate Vieques’ triumph. The design proposal is my approach on how to return the land to the community. With this thesis I intend to recognize the collective memory of a people who are still struggling to control their destiny. We should never forget how the Viequenses got together and fought to defend their land and their dignity against the most powerful military in the world; in hopes that the rest of Puerto Ricans can someday understand Vieques as the beggining of the end of colonization.

The topic of protected area management serves as the focal point of my thesis. The fundamental question I seek to answer is; what constitutes effective environmental management and how is it exemplified in the National Park Service (NPS)? How exactly does the NPS continually earn the trust and confidence of the American people when so many other government agencies are viewed in a negative light? How does the Channel Islands National Park, in particular, shape the economic and political framework in which it operates to achieve its goals? How does this agency effectively manage such a complex ecosystem spanning across five unique islands and the surrounding waters? More specifically, I examine how the NPS designs and implements strategies to simultaneously monitor a variety of endemic species, some of which are on the endangered species list, into feasible tasks and fundable projects. A wealth of information exists providing salient recommendations for improving endangered species recovery efforts, but this paper provides a detailed comparison of two contemporary recovery programs dealing with independent declines of the same species: the island fox. Finally, there is an overlapping mix of jurisdiction responsible for protecting the Channel Islands and I will also be examining the collaborative processes that take place among the multiple stakeholders such as the U.S. Navy, Catalina Island Conservancy, and The Nature Conservancy. The primary purpose of this thesis is to assess the relationships the NPS develops with other agencies in order to fulfill its mission within the context of the Channel Islands.

No description available.

Puerto Rico has been a United States territory since 1898. Since then, our identity and culture has been threatened by the impositions of the colonizer. The so-called “identity crisis” caused by the relationship with the U.S. government, is felt not only at a personal level, but also in our economy, politics and sociability. With the theme Decolonizing Architecture I explore our condition of colony, the struggles of the Puerto Rican people in favor of our emancipation and the role of architecture and memory to transcend our insular circumstance. My thesis focuses on the island of Vieques, a Puerto Rican Municipality that was invaded in 1941 by the U.S. Navy. The navy expropriated 2/3 of the island. The East was used as a weapons training facility and the West for ammunition storage. The Viequense community, of approximately 10,000 inhabitants, was left in the middle of training zones for war. In 2003, after more than five decades of relentless bombings and the many protests and civil disobedience acts against it from the local community, Puerto Ricans from the main island and in the diaspora, the navy withdrew from Vieques. Currently the previous Live Impact Area on the East side of Vieques is inaccessible due to cleanup from contamination but the land can be used to provide a renewable source of energy that would benefit the municipality. The intervention in the West is located on the former Naval Ammunition Storage Detachment where hundreds of abandoned bunkers are located. These bunkers will be rehabilitated to promote eco-tourism, to provide a space in memory of those who have died at the hands of the navy, and to commemorate Vieques’ triumph. The design proposal is my approach on how to return the land to the community. With this thesis I intend to recognize the collective memory of a people who are still struggling to control their destiny. We should never forget how the Viequenses got together and fought to defend their land and their dignity against the most powerful military in the world; in hopes that the rest of Puerto Ricans can someday understand Vieques as the beggining of the end of colonization.

The Indian Ocean has experienced a process of profound change in its political and strategic map since World War II. This began with the British withdrawal from East of Suez, and was followed by the entry of the superpowers into the Indian Ocean, the growth of superpower naval rivalry, and the proliferation of security problems of the states in the region. The essence of these developments is the transformation of the Indian Ocean from the stability of one-power domination to the instability of superpower rivalry. The thesis examines the process of this transformation and the Sri Lankan response from a historical perspective. The transformation of the power structure in the Indian Ocean was essentially an outcome of the changes in power configurations in world politics. The growth of superpower rivalry in the Indian Ocean must be understood in relation to the evolution of political, economic, and strategic interests of the superpowers, advances in weapons systems and naval technology, and political developments in the region. The superpower naval rivalry has three interrelated elements, viz, naval deployments, weapons deals, and jockeying for bases/logistic support in the region. It evolves in three phases: from 1968 to the 1973 oil crisis; from the oil crisis to 1978; and since 1978. There are definite linkages between superpower naval rivalry and the conflict patterns in the region. The states in the region count on the superpowers for their security because of the inherent weaknessess of the ruling elites in the region, the limits of their security options, and economic dependence. The invariable outcome is a chain reaction resulting in military pacts, puppet governments, political supression, and proxy war, which forms the texture of the international politics of the Indian Ocean region. Sri Lankan responses to superpower naval rivalry can be explained in relation to the geo-political framework of her strategic thinking, and her internal political and economic processes. In the period 1948-56, Sri Lanka identified herself with the British defence structure in the Indian Ocean. With the changes introduced by the M.E.P. regime, non-alignment became the foreign policy approach of Sri Lanka after 1956. In accordance with the growth of superpower naval presence, Sri Lanka became more sensitive to Indian Ocean strategic issues in the 1960s. After 1970, Sri Lankan policy towards the Indian Ocean took a more coherent form and was designed to balance two considerations - first, at the sub-regional level, how to deal with India; and at the Indian Ocean level, how to check superpower naval rivalry and the increasing militarization of the Indian Ocean. This was reflected in Sri Lanka's proposal for an Indian Ocean Peace Zone (IOPZ). After 1977, under the changed internal and international situation, Sri Lanka soft-pedalled her earlier more articulated position regarding superpower naval riavlry in the Indian Ocean. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

The concern of the diploma thesis is the geostrategic role of the base on the island Diego Garcia. It deals chronologically with the evolvement of this role since the base was established until the present time. Apart from the analysis of the extent, motivation and reasons of the evolvement, the explanation of all these is provided as well. The research is based on the theories formulated by admiral Alfred T. Mahan who was primarily concerned with the agenda of a naval superpower. The issue of bases is directly linked to that subject. The analysis pays attention to physical development of the facilities on the island which to a certain extent reflects the strategic role of the base. It also further examines the regional and global context which is deemed to be crucial for the better understanding of the function the base had for the United States. Practical usage of the base is analysed for a better explanation of the role the base played as some of the contemporary documents are still classified and unavailable. According to the research, the role the base played changed several times but it is very difficult to point out the main factor that caused the change. Most probably, it was caused by a combination of several factors.

The purpose of this study is to examine from a public relations point-of-view, the public image impact on the United States from the efforts of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps' response to the tsunami crisis. The thesis analyzes the disaster that affected so many nations, and the humanitarian response of the United States Navy and Marine Corps in Operation Unified Assistance and the role of Navy Public Affairs following the earthquake and tsunami disaster and the importance of visual media.