Complex sentence: Some retired navy generals went as far as to state, "the Navy might be our weakest link during wartime", while several critics expressed that "the Navy was stretched thin trying to develop a blue-water force".
Split into simpler sentences: Some retired navy generals went as far as to say, "the Navy might be our weakest link during wartime". Critics went on to say, "the Navy was stretched thin trying to develop a blue-water force".