The United Kingdom (UK) announced that it would permanently deploy two warships to the Indo-Pacific later this year after its Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier and escort ships sail to Japan in September. The fleet will sail through the South China Sea, where China is competing for influence with the United States (US) and Japan.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, Britain’s Defence Minister, Ben Wallace, and his Japanese counterpart, Nobuo Kishi, said: “Following on from the strike group’s inaugural deployment, the United Kingdom will permanently assign two ships in the region, from later this year.” Moreover, the UK government’s press release stated that the permanent deployments “will also contribute a Littoral Response Group (LRG) in the coming years, thereby demonstrating the UK’s commitment to collective defence and security in the region in the decades ahead.”
The CNN quoted Kishi saying that after the fleet arrives in Japan, the Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier and its escort ships will split up and move to the separate US and Japanese naval bases along the Japanese archipelago. Al Jazeera reported that Japan hosts the largest concentration of the US military forces outside the US, including ships, aircraft and thousands of marines.
In addition, Wallace, who was on a two-day visit to Tokyo, elaborated on the UK’s growing commitment to the Indo-Pacific. “Following exercises with the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Japan, the upcoming visit of the UK-led Carrier Strike Group to five ports across the country is a clear demonstration of our commitment to maintaining regional security and upholding the rules-based international order with Japan,” he said. Apart from Yokosuka, parts of the fleet will also visit the ports of Sasebo, Okinawa, Kure, and Maizuru, the UK government stated.
On its maiden voyage, the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier will be escorted by two destroyers, two frigates, two support vessels and ships from the US and the Netherlands. The carrier will convey F-35B stealth jets and dock at Yokosuka, home to Japan’s fleet command and the USS Ronald Reagan, the only forward-deployed US aircraft carrier. The fleet is expected to make its way to its docking point through the volatile South China Sea, which has large parts claimed by China and other Southeast Asian nations. Reuters reported that the fleet also has layovers scheduled in India, Singapore, and South Korea.
Meanwhile, Wallace also held a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, during which the British Secretary of State spoke about “the UK and Japan’s common strategic interests, their commitment to stability in the region and a free and open Indo-Pacific.” The British Secretary of State was accompanied by Admiral Antony Radakin, the First Sea Lord, and Air Chief Marshal Michael Wigston, the Chief of Air Staff. During the remainder of the visit, the British delegation also met senior leaders of the Japanese Self Defence Forces and the US Forces in Japan.