This is the report of the Seventh International Conference on the Security of Sea Lines of Communication in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans co-sponsored by the United States Global Strategy Council and SRI International. This conference stressed the erosion of the communist system and the need for cooperation among sea-going nations in the changing, unpredictable, and perhaps even more dangerous world. The papers presented cover many areas from the strategic trends in the world situation to piracy to command and control and represent the views of individuals from nations as diverse as Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, New Zealand, and the Republic of China on Taiwan. All emphasized the diplomatic problems of maintaining freedom of the seas especially as trading relationships become more and more essential for worldwide economic stability and national security. Originally published in 1991.