The Arabian Gulf has been at the centre of the world stage for over fifty years, due to the region’s all-important oilfields, upon which the global economy depends. In this fascinating book, Iain Ballantyne examines the roles of the British and American navies, charring their actions from shortly after the Second World War to the present. He describes the US Navy and Royal Navy response to various disputes down the decades, from the Abadan Crisis of 1951, the Suez fiasco of 1956, the Tanker War of the 1980s, confronting Libya, DESERT STORM in 1991, the post- September 11th War on Terrorism and, finally, the Iraq War of 2003 that deposed Saddam Hussein. The author’s contacts within the US and UK naval communities have yielded inside stories of tense deployments and combat action, with many people speaking for the first time about their key roles and the risks they faced. Of particular interest to naval enthusiasts will be the descriptions of evolving capabilities, including the critical importance pf aircraft carriers projecting power.