The Doctrinal Legitimacy of Gorshkov\u27s Writings

The appearance in 1976 of Admiral Gorshkov\u27s book Sea Power of the State revived the question of whether the views of the Soviet Commander in Chief were a statement of doctrine or not. At the time of the publication of the Gorshkov series of articles in 1972-3, many Western commentators, relying heavily on their feel for the authoritativeness with which Gorshkov wrote, concluded that the series was part of a factional debate. Later, these same commentators argued that the book was a doctrinal confirmation of the views expressed in the series. The issue is not merely semantic, In Soviet military literature, doctrine holds a unique place. Military doctrine is at the apex of all military thinking and writing