From the preface when the book was originally published by the Naval War College Press in 1979: "The object of this study is not just to provide a history of the Soviet Navy and a review of current tactics and strategic doctrine, but also to provide a basis for predicting how the Navy will be used - a guide to action, as it were..."Understanding the Soviet Navy is not easy. The Soviet Government, like the Imperial Russian Government before it; makes considerable use of false information - disinformation..."