Naval Compromise of 2290

The Naval Compromise of 2290 was an agreement between the Unified Earth Government (UEG) and the United Nations Space Command (UNSC) regarding naval assets in the Sol System. After more than two decades of butting heads over funding for maintenance and new naval construction, UEG and UNSC leadership hammered out a compromise in 2290: the UNSC would decommission and scrap dozens of older capital ships and escorts, as well as committing several more to reserve, and the UEG would provide funding for major naval construction well into the next century. 
The Naval Compromise was also known as the "Unity Naval Agreement" or "Unity Naval Compromise" as a result of the dispute over the UNSC's planned Unity-class heavy cruisers. These new heavy cruisers were planned to carry centerline magnetic accelerator cannons and had been in the works since the 2270s. The UEG had flatly refused to authorize funding for the Unity cruisers throughout the 2280s as the UNSC refused to significantly reduce its battleship forces. In 2289, UNSC leadership finally capitulated and agreed to the reductions demanded by the UEG in exchange for funding the Unity cruisers.
The UNSC was already in the process of replacing older ships with new ones: the Endurance heavy carriers were already planned for decommissioning, and several had already been withdrawn from service as the new Triumphant-class entered commission. 
Subsequent to the agreement, the UNSC decommissioned and scrapped eleven heavy carriers, seventeen battleships, and fourteen heavy cruisers over the next two decades. The UNSC likewise decommissioned two supercarriers, three heavy carriers, two battleships, and six heavy cruisers and placed them in reserve. 
*UNSC ships scrapped: 
**11 x Endurance-class heavy carriers: Chancellor in 2290, Distant Shore in 2291, Dark Blossoms in 2292, Mars Victorious in 2293, Against All Odds in 2294, Forever Autumn in 2296, Hannibal in 2298, Majestic and Terrible in 2299, Ark Royal in 2301, and Knight of Malta in 2305. 
**1 x unique super-heavy battleship: Ares in 2293. 
**1 x unique heavy battleship: Achilles in 2295. 
**5 x Victory-class heavy battleships: Unity and Victory in 2290, Mars in 2292, and Glory and Jupiter in 2294. 
**7 x Vindication-class heavy battleships: Luna in 2290, Ceres, Europa, and Io in 2291, Earth One in 2293, Callisto in 2297, Amazonia in 2298, and Vindication in 2306. 
**2 x unique light battleships: Do Unto Others in 2292 and Onslaught in 2295. 
**4 x unique heavy cruisers: Praetor in 2295, Everest in 2297, Challenger in 2299, and Saladin in 2305. 
**3 x Indomitable-class heavy cruisers: Intrepid in 2293, Indomitable in 2296, and Indefatigable in 2296. 
**7 x Aurora-class heavy cruisers: Swordsman in 2292, Formidable in 2294, Pillars of Wisdom in 2296, Bagration in 2299, Unflinching in 2301, Resolve in 2305, and Napoleon in 2311. 
*UNSC ships placed in reserve: 
**2 x Leviathan-class supercarriers: Leviathan and Titan in 2290. 
**3 x Endurance-class heavy carriers: Adversary in 2301, Amber Skies in 2306, and Destiny's Embrace in 2316. 
**2 x unique heavy battleships: Preeminence in 2294 and Deep Tranquility in 2298. 
**1 x unique heavy cruiser: Lion in 2296. 
**2 x Indomitable-class heavy cruisers: Invincible in 2291 and Incomparable in 2303. 
**3 x Aurora-class heavy cruisers: Aurora in 2291, Heart of Courage in 2296, and Redoubtable in 2300.
The budget dispute is commonly viewed as the first of three critical junctures in the relationship between the Unified Earth Government and the United Nations Space Command. In this instance, the Naval Compromise of 2290 is considered the only successful resolution by the UEG in which the UNSC was humbled and brought to heel. In both subsequent junctures - the continued operational presence of the UNSC in the Inner Colonies after 2410, and the UNSC response to the Insurrection in the 2490s - the UEG utterly failed to bring the UNSC under control. The encounter with the Covenant Empire in 2525 and the resulting Human-Covenant War witnessed a near-complete handover of authority by the UEG to the UNSC. The supremacy of the UNSC was only brought to an end by the devastating conclusion of the war and the fierce reassertion of the UEG's authority postwar.