The United States’ (US) expeditionary mobile base reportedly entered the South China Sea (SCS) for the first time on Monday, putting Chinese defence forces on alert.
Citing commercial satellite imagery, Beijing-based think tank South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) said in a release that the USS Miguel Keith was spotted sailing together with an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in SCS waters to the southwest to the Bashi Channel on Monday. The think tank added that it was the first time the vessel had entered the SCS since its deployment to the West Pacific in October 2021.
Chinese state-owned media house Global Times described the USS Miguel Keith as “a type of large logistics support and command and control vessel.” Chinese analysts have expressed alarm, as the mobile warship enables the US military to quickly set up a sea base almost anywhere in the world, allowing it to operate even more extensively in the already volatile region.
USNS Miguel Keith (T-ESB-5) and one USN DDG spotted together in the #SouthChinaSea via @sentinel_hub on March 21. It should be the first time for ESB-5 entering the #SouthChinaSea. pic.twitter.com/zDPEJxW4uf
— SCS Probing Initiative (@SCS_PI) March 21, 2022
With a displacement of more than 90,000 tons, the USS Miguel Keith is among the biggest warship types in the world, second only to US aircraft carriers. The mobile base is capable of carrying out several tasks, including hosting the landing and takeoffs of heavy helicopters, providing logistics support, and acting as a command and control centre, the think tank said. It further speculated that the support ship will likely join military drills and events in the SCS and nearby regions due to the base’s multi-role characteristics.
The US Navy’s recently commissioned vessel can accommodate around 100 sailors and 44 civilians and has a range of more than 9,500 nautical miles. An unnamed expert cited by the state-owned media house warned that the huge platform can carry a large number of equipment and supplies despite its lack of direct offensive capabilities. It can also “provide logistics support including maintenance, repair, refuel, rearm and replenishment to other warships and helicopters, greatly increasing their endurance when operating far away from a land base,” the expert said.
Naval Special Warfare operators rehearse visit, board, search, and seizure tactics aboard the Lewis B. Puller class expeditionary staging base USS Miguel Keith (ESB 5) demonstrating the U.S. commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and increases Joint Force readiness. pic.twitter.com/atlqFsrfAU
— USSOCOM (@USSOCOM) November 25, 2021
However, analysts cited by the media house also believe that the expeditionary mobile base is “of little threat to China in combat” due to the Asian giant’s advanced anti-ship capabilities, including anti-ship ballistic missiles that “can easily take out even aircraft carriers.” They believe that the ship is only a cause for concern during peace time, as it encourages the US military to indulge in more provocative moves.
US naval vessels often traverse through the SCS and the Indo-Pacific at large. Although China has criticised the moves as “provocations,” the US Navy has argued that it is simply asserting its navigational rights and freedoms consistent with international law. “Under international law as reflected in the Law of the Sea Convention, the ships of all states, including their warships, enjoy the right of innocent passage through the territorial sea,” the US Navy has stated on previous occassions.