The U.S. Navy has sent a warship through the Taiwan Strait for the first time this year.
7th Fleet spokesman Lt. Joe Keiley stated USS Shiloh sailed through the strait demonstrating
"the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific".
He called the transit "routine.”
The move is significant as it comes less than a week after Tsai Ing-wen who is a pro-democracy
& pro-separatist advocate won a second term in Taiwan.
Her reelection is considered to be a rebuke to China's efforts to engage what it regards
as a breakaway province.
As usual, China registered a verbal protest after the transit.
Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang urged the United States to "prudently and
properly handle issues relating to Taiwan to avoid harming China-US relations and affecting
peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait”.
He added, “China paid close attention to and monitored from start to end the passage
of the US military vessel through the Taiwan Strait.
The Taiwan question is the most important and most sensitive issue in China-US relations
as it bears on China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
In this video Defense Updates analyzes why China didn’t dare to challenge USS Shiloh
as it passed through the Taiwan Strait?
Let’s get started.
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China views Taiwan as a breakaway province and wants to bring it to its fold in the future.
Taiwan is currently a self-governed democracy.
Though Taiwan has no formal diplomatic ties with the U.S, it remains an important ally.
U.S relation with Taiwan is governed by the Taiwan Relations Act.
The Taiwan Relations Act neither confirms that the USA will intervene militarily if
China invades Taiwan nor does it relinquishes it, maintaining a strategic ambiguity.
As per the act, “The United States will make available to Taiwan such defense articles
and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain
sufficient self-defense capabilities”
The Taiwan Strait is tactically important since it separates China from Taiwan and China
will have to move its forces across the strait in case it decides to invade.
The strait constitutes international waters, though China keeps a close eye on any movement
in the strait especially if it's a U.S Navy warship.
Taiwan Strait is also part of the larger dispute of the South China Sea region.
USS Shiloh (CG-67) is a Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser.
The Ticonderoga-class cruiser's design was based on the Spruance-class destroyer.
She was built at the Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine and commissioned on 18 July 1992.
Yokosuka, Japan is the homeport of the warship.
It is interesting to note that Shiloh launched 6 Tomahawk cruise missiles in Operation Desert
Strike against Iraq.
USS Shiloh has an overall length of 567 ft or 173 m and a displacement of about 9,600
tons.
This makes it one of the largest cruisers in the world.
It has limited Kevlar splinter protection in critical areas.
USS Shiloh is designed as a multi-role warship.
It can carry out Anti Aircraft Warfare (AAW), Anti Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Anti Surface
Warfare (ASuW).
For propulsion, it has 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines generating 75 MW of
power, driving 2 shafts.
It has a speed of 32+ knots (60+ km/h) and a range of 6000 nm or 11000 km.
The Aegis combat system forms a critical component of the Ticonderoga warships including USS
Shiloh.
The Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System is designed by the United States Department
of Defense, Missile Defense Agency to protect against short and intermediate-range ballistic
missiles.
Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense is devised to intercept ballistic missiles post-boost
phase and prior to reentry.
It enables USS Shiloh to shoot down enemy ballistic missiles by expanding the Aegis
Combat System with the addition of the AN/SPY-1 radar and Standard missiles.
Aegis BMD-equipped vessels can transmit their target detection information to other systems
and, if needed, engage potential threats using Standard series missiles like SM-3 or SM-6.
The centerpiece of the AEGIS systems is a very powerful multi-purpose AN/SPY-1 radar
present in USS Shiloh.
It is considered to be one of the most advanced naval radar that can automatically detect
and track targets.
The high-power of 4 MW enables it to simultaneously track over 100 targets and guide missiles.
Traditional search radars have rotating antennas that can track a target once during every
360-degree sweep.
A separate tracking radar is required to guide missiles to a particular target.
AN/SPY-1 radar is different.
It incorporates the two functions into a single tightly integrated system.
The 4 fixed arrays of "SPY" direct electromagnetic beams in all directions concurrently and continuously.
So, the targets are tracked without interruption.
The radar can be made to focus on a single target when needed, without blinding the warship
against other threats.
This enables the radar to create a very holistic view of the surrounding, providing unprecedented
situational awareness.
USS Shiloh has AN/SQQ-89(V)1/3 - A(V)15 Sonar suite.
The suite consists of AN/SQS-53B/C/D active sonar and AN/SQR-19 TACTAS, AN/SQR-19B ITASS,
& MFTA passive sonar.
It can provide precise information for Anti Submarine Warfare control and guidance.
USS Shiloh has two 61 cell Mk 41 vertical launch system that can be equipped with a
choice of different weapons.
1. RIM-66M-5 Standard SM-2MR Block IIIB for Air Defense & Anti Ship role with a range of 103
miles or 167 km and speed of Mach 3.5
2. RIM-156A SM-2ER Block IV for Anti Aircraft & Anti Ship role with a range of 115 miles
or 185 km and speed of Mach 3.5
3. RIM-161 SM-3 for Ballistic missile defense with a range of 435 miles or 700 km and speed
of Mach 10.
It can also be used as an Anti-satellite weapon.
4. RIM-162A ESSM for anti-missile role with a range of 31 miles or 50 km and speed of Mach 4.
It can be quad packed in single Mk 41 cells.
5. RIM-174A Standard ERAM or SM 6 for anti-air warfare with a range of 150 miles or 240 km
and speed Mach 3.5
6. BGM-109 Tomahawk for land attack.
It has a long range of up to 1550 miles or 2500 km with subsonic speed.
7. RUM-139A VL-ASROC anti-submarine missile with a range of 13 miles or 22 km
It also has 8 Harpoon Missile Launcher for Anti Ship role.
2 × Mark 32 triple torpedo tubes are present launching Mk-46 or Mk-50 torpedoes
2 Sikorsky SH-60B helicopters are responsible for Anti Submarine Warfare.
Other weapons consist of long-range naval guns and a variety of Close-In Weapon System.
USS Shiloh's multi-mission capability makes it one of the most well-balanced warships
in the world.
Any Chinese intervention in its mission would have certainly been met with a strong response.
This prevented China from taking any steps.
Taiwan is one of the many critical flashpoints when it comes to the US-China relationship
which also includes trade disputes.
The U.S. last year sent 11 ships through the Taiwan Strait on eight separate transits.
It was a significant increase from 2018 when the U.S. made just three passages through
the strait.
This needs to be seen in the larger context and has a message for both Taiwan & China.
It is clear that the U.S will continue to support Taiwan and won’t back down when
it comes to taking on China.