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Hong Kong (CNN) - Somewhere in the Pacific, a stealthy US Navy warship carries new weapons that, according to analysts, could help tip the balance of power in disputed areas such as the South China Sea.
The USS Gabrielle Giffords, an elegant and fast low-profile coastal fighter ship, left San Diego earlier this month with the new US Navy naval attack missile. UU. and a helicopter-type drone that helps you aim at your target.
The naval attack missile is a cruise missile that grazes the sea and is difficult to detect on the radar, and can maneuver to avoid enemy defenses, according to Raytheon, the main US contractor for the weapon. It goes on the Gabrielle Giffords ship along with an MQ-8B Fire Scout drone, which is used to search for targets.
Test of the naval attack missile from the USS Coronado ship in 2014.
The weapons will increase the lethal capacity of the US Navy. UU., According to the Commander. John Fage, spokesman for the 3rd fleet of the United States Navy that confirmed its deployment.
"The Pentagon is building a military force that can operate more sustainably and has a better chance of fighting and surviving" in the face of the strategy of the People's Liberation Army of China that uses a mixture of ships, planes and missiles to control parts of the Pacific said Timothy Heath, senior defense analyst at Rand Corp.
Both the United States and China blame each other for the rapid militarization of the South China Sea, one of the most disputed areas in the world. Multiple countries claim parts of the region, an important commercial step, but Beijing's claim is by far the most expansive, covering most of the sea.
Since 2015, the Chinese government has tried to support its position through the militarization of reclaimed sandbanks across the South China Sea, and says the repeated exercises of the US Navy. UU. in the region they show that it is necessary for China to defend its interests.
"In the face of heavily armed ships and military aircraft, how can we not build defense facilities?" Chinese defense minister Wei Fenghe said at the Shangi-la Dialogue in June.
About the naval attack missile
Gabrielle Giffords is the first coastal fighter ship to be deployed with naval attack missiles, but most of the ships in the growing fleet of these ships, which will eventually add more than 30, are armed with them, Navy officials said. to a Senate Armed Services subcommittee earlier this year.
The coastal combat ships come in two variants, the Independence class of three helmets, of which the Giffords is part, and the Freedom class of single hull. Both variants, with air currents of 15 feet or less, are designed for operations in coastal areas or in shallow waters around coasts and islands.
The naval attack missile has had a relatively short time since the test until its deployment by the US military. UU. Developed by Norway's Kongsberg Defense and Aerospace for the Norwegian army, it was successfully tested on the USS Coronado coastal combat ship in 2014. Defense giant Raytheon became the U.S. missile contractor in 2018.
The key to the naval attack missile is its range of more than 100 miles (160 kilometers), 30% farther than Harpoon missiles than the US Navy. UU. has used
The USS Gabrielle Giffords in the Pacific Ocean in July 2019.
The ability to work with the drone allows the ship to aim outside of what its own surface radars can see.
The Fire Scout drone gives the warship "eyes on the horizon," said analyst Carl Schuster, former US Navy captain. UU. “The ability to aim is as important as the missile system. You can only hit what you can find. ”
And having it on smaller shoreline combat ships removes a load from the larger destroyers and cruisers, which are designed more for open water combat and have been reduced by current demands, Heath said.
"I hope more coastal-type ships operate in the South China Sea, freeing the largest combat ships currently carrying out the majority of patrols in that region," Heath said.
While the US Navy UU. He has not officially said where Gabrielle Giffords is heading, it is speculated that it will be Singapore, where the twin ship USS Montgomery was deployed this summer, although without naval attack missiles.
“The mission of the USS Gabrielle Giffords will be to conduct maritime security operations, perform security cooperation in the area, provide crisis response capacity and maintain an advanced naval presence, where and when necessary. However, we do not discuss specific safety details, ”said Fage.
U.S. Navy leaders UU. They have said several times this year that they plan to have two of the coastal combat ships operating outside of Singapore this year. And more could come as the fleet is built.
Message for China ... and others
The deployment of weapons sends an important message and may eventually "change the game" in the waters of the Western Pacific, where China now enjoys a 3 to 1 advantage in cruise missiles over the United States, Schuster said.
"This is a first step to correct that imbalance, with more to follow in the coming years," said Schuster.
The weapons could send messages not only to China, but to US partners in the Asia-Pacific region, including those of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) such as Singapore or Vietnam, which is experiencing increasing friction with Beijing over island claims and mineral rights in areas of the South China Sea.
"The net effect should reinforce the credibility of the deterrent power of the United States in the region," Heath said. "It also makes the partnership with the United States less risky, as these investments demonstrate the United States' commitment to the region."
Washington has promoted itself as a more reliable partner than China in the region, especially in the South China Sea, where it conducts frequent operations as part of what it calls its commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
Beijing, which claims that almost the entire South China Sea is its territory, says that the US military presence in it threatens peace and stability.
The addition of any new US firepower. UU. It will almost certainly annoy Beijing, both for the message it sends and for the power it shows.
"ASEAN countries should benefit in particular from the strongest US military presence in Southeast Asia, as China is likely to respond, in part, by operating more cautiously in the South China Sea," Heath said.
Missile