The high cost of building and maintaining today's modern warships continues to merge with an understanding that friendly fleets often work best cooperatively. This realization is reflected both in the types of warships now being built and in an ever-growing trend toward interoperability. Through initiatives such as the "1,000-Ship Navy," a global maritime network proposed to help prevent terrorism and to provide humanitarian natural disaster relief, navies are becoming more relevant than ever. A new collaborative spirit has been generating optimism in a domain where single ships often cost billions of dollars, yet even the smallest of navies have vital contributions to offer.
