US warship carrying F-35s crosses South China Sea to join drills in Philippines

A US navy warship carrying a fleet of F-35 stealth fighter jets has crossed South China Sea to join upcoming joint drills with Filipino naval forces, a move that could add up to ongoing tensions between Washington and Beijing over the US military presence in the region.

The USS Wasp amphibious assault ship was spotted this week sailing in the disputed waters carrying 10 US Marines F-35B fighter jets on board, local media reported Saturday.

The ship was heading toward Subic Bay in the Philippines, where it would join annual Balikatan military drills involving 4,000 Filipino soldiers, 3,000 US servicemen and 50 Australian troops.

This year’s iteration of Balikatan exercises will include a live fire drill at the gunnery range in Crow Valley, Capas, Tarlac on Wednesday as well as a joint amphibious landing on the shorelines of Zambales the next day.

The drills would also include counter-terrorism missions, urban operations training, aviation operations and bilateral planning.

The F-35B Lightening II aircraft on board the Wasp were also slated to carry out aerial missions before the maneuvers end on April 12.

The USS Wasp had twice the usual number of fighter jets on board, probably as an experiment to test the US military theory that Wasp-class warships can double-function as small aircraft carriers.  The Pentagon plans to reduce the number of the aircraft carriers in its fleet to 10 by 2040.

Beijing has not yet commented on the ship’s passage through the disputed waters of the South China Sea, over which China and a number of other neighboring nations -- including the Philippines-- claim sovereignty.

The Chinese government regularly reacts to the US military’s so-called “freedom of navigation” sails in the waters, which Washington insists are aimed at protecting maritime travel in the sea.

Over $5 trillion dollar in maritime trade passes through South China Sea every year.

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Washington sends warships and military aircraft near Chinese islands in the sea on a regular basis to challenge China’s claims. Beijing has slammed the operations as “provocations,” repeatedly calling on the US to remove its ships from the region.

The US has been expanding its military presence in the region as part of President Donald Trump’s new military strategy, which shifts focus from the Middle East Region to the Pacific region to confront China and Russia as main threats to US national security.

China has yet to respond to the new development.

Russia, on the other hand, has said that it will send three warships to the Philippines in the coming days.

The Philippine navy said in statement that Russia’s anti-submarine ships Admiral Tributs and Vinogradoy and sea tanker Irkut will drop anchor at the Port of Manila on Monday on a five-day goodwill visit.

“The Philippine Navy will render customary welcome ceremony upon arrival of the vessels to be followed by a press briefing with both navies’ key officials,” said Filipino Navy Capt. Jonathan Zata.

Another Filipino navy commander told Philstar Global that the Russian port call was a reciprocal visit in response to last year’s historic visit of the strategic Filipino sealift vessel BRP Tarlac to Russia’s Pacific Fleet headquarters in Vladisvostok.

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