U.S. Navy eyes stationing ships in Singapore

Andrea Shalal-ESA

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. underlining the importance of the "operating system forward" Navy, in the midst of tightening budgets and increasing threats at sea, railway station in the next few years some of his new Litorale fight is against vessels in Singapore and is considering similar agreements in the Philippines.
The Navy is "maritime crossroads" of the Asia-Pacific region, the strategic focus of the US Naval wrote Chief of naval operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert Institute published in the December issue of the proceedings, increasingly.

The evolving strategy comes against the backdrop of mounting concerns about China's military expansion and the growing reach of the Navy, as well as Assembly budget pressures in the United States.

These developments are Austal, General Dynamics Corp. and other weapons makers, that two models of the new warships for the U.S. Navy are building will be watched closely by Lockheed Martin Corp., Australia's and hope to sell them to other countries in the coming years.

"Because we will probably not be able be to maintain the financial and diplomatic district costs of the new main operating bases overseas, the fleet of 2025 will provide more on host ports and other facilities where our ships, aircraft and crews can refuel, rest, and repair while deployed," Greenert in naval magazine wrote.
In this way, the Navy helps "sustain its global forward attitude with what may be a smaller number of ships and aircraft than it is today", he wrote.

Greenert and other Navy officials have plans for the deployment of ships at Singapore and elsewhere in Southeast Asia in recent months in detail speeches started. Details of the timing of these steps is still discussed.

The problem came during meetings naval officers in the Asian-Pacific economic cooperation meetings last month, where informed "was China one problem, the number" according to a source of some of the sessions.
In the article procedure said Greenert, that the Navy planned to "some of our latest Litorale warships on Singapore's marine plant, station next to plans by President Barack Obama to start rotational deployments of Marines to Darwin, Australia announced".

A single source about Navy plans said informed that it was discussed on the stationing ships in the Philippines.
The new strategy for South-East Asia far Ernie Bower, who said the Center for strategic and international studies, other than the major U.S. bases in Japan and South Korea would be set up in the last century.
"We are a new system with a smaller footprint that explore mission-specific and culturally and politically tastier countries," he said, added that it is difficult for Washington to drum up political support for large bases in the region. Would save forward deployment when compared to permanent bases the Navy money, he said.
Greenert does not offer a timetable for the LCS deployment in Singapore, but said that sea would lead the ships cooperative Counterpiracy or countertrafficking operations to the South China. You would provide to other places on the Suppression of terrorism or train with partner countries.

Greenert mentioned not stationing LCS ships in the Philippines, but it or monitoring referred to Thailand would provide built by Northrop Grumman Corp. regularly manned aircraft or the unmanned broad area maritime surveillance (BAMS) aircraft such as Boeing Co P-8A Poseidon.

Greenert said the Navy would replace minesweepers in Bahrain with Tiber warships next decade and planned to deploy four destroyers to an existing site in Rota, Spain.

Navy Secretary Ray Mabus is traveling in Asia this week, but has no plans in Singapore or the Philippines one loud stop a spokeswoman for his Office.

Mabus met with Singapore's Prime Minister in November 2010 and toured Singapore's Changi naval base. He had planned another visit in August, but was forced to cancel his plans and home rush for 30 US troops were killed, was shot down as their CH-47 Chinook helicopter over Afghanistan.

Bilateral military relations between the United States and Singapore have continued to grow, because the two countries signed a strategic framework agreement in 2005. You have involved joint training, military exercises and ship visits.
The Lockheed-built USS freedom littoral combat ship is in San Diego for tests and trials to maintained. Navy said date and destination of the first deployment expected operational details of which the vessel still "under discussion", spokesman Commander Jason salata.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-ESA;) (Editing by Matthew Lewis, Gary Hill)