One of the U.S. Navy’s largest surface warships, the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS
Wasp, has sailed near the strategic reef Scarborough Shoal.
Scarborough Shoal which was seized by Beijing in 2012 after an extended standoff is claimed
by Beijing as well as the Philippines and lies just 230 km (140 miles) from the Philippine coast.
U.S. military spokeswoman did not confirm or deny the Wasp’s presence the area, citing
“force protection and security.”
However, the spokeswoman confirmed that USS Wasp “has been training with Philippine
Navy ships in Subic Bay and in international waters of the South China Sea … for several days.”
This comes at a time when the relation between the Philippines and China has reached a new low.
In this video, Defense Updates analyses WHY CHINA SHOULD FEAR THE PRESENCE OF USS WASP
IN SOUTH CHINA SEA EVEN AS PHILIPPINE'S PRESIDENT HAS WARNED CHINA OF SUICIDE ATTACK?
Let's get started.
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China’s sweeping claims of sovereignty over the South China Sea have infuriated competing
claimants Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan, Indonesia, Vietnam as well as the Philippines.
United States, Japan, Australia, and India favor freedom of navigation as it is a very
important sea route with 5 trillion $ in trade, 1/2 of global merchant shipping and 1/2 of
world’s oil shipment pass through it.
The sea also has alleged 11 billion barrels of untapped oil and 190 trillion cubic feet
of natural gas.
China has embarked on its massive land-reclamation program in early 2014 and has since then deployed
diverse military assets in the several islands in the region like air base in the Woody Island.
In 2013, the Philippines government lead by the then President Benigno Aquino III brought
an arbitration case against China in Permanent Court of Arbitration.
On 12 July 2016, the tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines.
The landmark decision rejected China’s assertion that it enjoys historical rights over a huge
area of the South China Sea encompassed by a “nine-dash line.”
China had argued that the tribunal had no jurisdiction in the matter and rejected the
decision.
But by that time Rodrigo Duterte had become the new president and declared that he had
no intention of taking any steps based on the judgment.
He also openly favored aligning internationally with China and Russia, despite the existence
of a long-standing treaty of friendship with the United States.
But the underlining issue of Chinese hegemony remained and it seems Chinese eyes are now
set on another island.
In the first three months of 2019, the Philippine armed forces say they have observed 600 Chinese
naval vessels circling Pagasa island which the Philippines claims as part of its territory.
On Apr 4th events took a new turn when President Duterte stated,
“I’m trying to tell China, Pagasa is ours.
So let us be friends, but do not touch Pagasa Island and the rest.
Otherwise, things would be different.”
He insisted that “this is not a warning, this is just a word of advice to my friends,
because China is our friend”.
Duterte went on, “I will not plead or beg, but I’m just
telling you to lay off Pagasa, because I have soldiers there, If you touch it, that’s
another story.
Then I will tell my soldiers ‘prepare for suicide missions’.”
So, again the tensions between China and Philippine have peaked.
The increased Chinese assertiveness has been a source of major concern for not only Philippine
but all the stakeholders of the South China Sea.
In an effort to push back against China’s behavior U.S military regularly sends warships
as part of “freedom of navigation operations” in the South China Sea.
The Wasp has a displacement of 40,532 long tons & has a length of 844 ft (257 m).
Wasp's two steam propulsion plants generate a total of 400 tons of steam per hour.
The propulsion system develops 70,000 shaft horsepower (52 MW), powering the ship to speeds
in excess of 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph).
It has a range of 9,500 nautical miles (17,600 km; 10,900 mi)
The amphibious assault ship, commissioned in 1989, has a crew of over 1,000 officers
and sailors and can embark around 2,200 Marines, smaller amphibious assault crafts, and around
31 aircraft, AV-8B Harrier IIs, MH-60S Knighthawk helicopters, AH-1Z Viper helicopters, and
MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft.
There have been major upgrades which include fight deck update to accommodate F 35Bs and
inclusion of several new systems like MK 2 Ship Self Defense System, SPQ-9B horizon search
radar, and MK 57 NATO Sea Sparrow Missile System.
The F 35 Lightning II is a single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole fighters developed
by Lockheed Martin of United States.
The F-35B is the short takeoff and vertical landing variant of the aircraft.
At present, it is only stealth jet capable of operating from aircraft carriers.
It has a range of 900 nautical miles that is 1,667 km or 10,35 mi and can carry a wide
variety of air to land and air to air missile.
Though F 35B is not agile and maneuverable as the other variant of the aircraft, but
it is still a far better when compared to AV-8B Harrier II which cannot even go supersonic.
F 35B like the other variants can also act as a force multiplier.
For example, it is compatible with the Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air network,
or NIFC-CA.
NIFC-CA basically is a network architecture that combines several different sensors, dataline,
and munitions.
NIFC-CA allows F 35s to pass targeting data to other military assets like a warship armed
with SM-6 missiles which can then use that data to hit the targets.
Chinese desire to control the whole of the South China Sea could result it in being increasingly
seen as a bully by its neighbors.
The situation with the Philippine is a prime example.
Even a country like Japan is not rearming itself with offensive capability to counter China.
America deploying USS Wasp carrying F 35Bs is an indication that it is ready to use major
military assets in the region to counter China.
The overall scenario could be get stacked against China in the coming days.