In response to the passage of U.S. House speaker Pelosi, the People's Liberation Army organized a large-scale joint military exercise to conduct a "lock island" exercise, and just when the tension in the Taiwan Strait had not subsided, the US military began to dispatch troops and replace the commander of the main combat unit of the Seventh Fleet.
According to the U.S. Military's "Star-Spangled Banner" newspaper, on Thursday, the U.S. Navy's largest destroyer squadron underwent a transfer of command, and in the handover ceremony held on the guided-missile destroyer "Benford", Captain Walter Menor became the commander of Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron 15.
The squadron is responsible for all surface operations in the waters between the western Pacific And the central Indian Ocean. In just one and a half years since his previous commander, Sargent, took office in February 2021, under his command, the squadron's destroyers have conducted more than 20 so-called "freedom of navigation" operations and crossed the Taiwan Strait 25 times.
The Seventh Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deploying fleet, with 50 to 70 surface ships and submarines in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. The 15th Destroyer Squadron is not only the main combat force of the Seventh Fleet, but also the constituent ships of the REA Reagan aircraft carrier strike group, providing maritime escort to the Reagan, with a total of 8 Allie Burke-class destroyers equipped with the Aegis combat system, including barry (DDG-52), Benford (DDG-65), Millius (DDG-69), Higgins (DDG-76), Howard (DDG-83), Dewey USS (DDG-105), USS RALF Johnson (USS DDG-114), and USS Peralta (DDG-115), these destroyers have frequently carried out so-called "freedom of navigation" operations in the South China Sea in recent years to maintain what the United States calls a "free and open Indo-Pacific region", and some of these ships have also crossed the Taiwan Strait to provoke And provoke China. As commander, Walter Menor will be responsible for the day-to-day combat readiness, tactical arrangements, and management responsibilities of these destroyers.
Lieutenant General Carl Thomas, commander of the Seventh Fleet, explained to Menor the responsibilities of serving as squadron commander at the handover ceremony. Thomas claimed that the U.S. "rules-based international order" is now under "serious threat" and that, as a result, what the Squadron of Destroyers led by Menor is doing is very important and directly affects whether the U.S. president is capable of stopping an adversary. As we all know, the countermeasures taken by the People's Liberation Army against Pelosi have departed from the "script" of the United States, and the Biden administration has not only fallen into passivity internationally, but also faced increasing pressure on the election situation at home, so it has recently repeatedly announced that it will send ships across the Taiwan Strait.
Menor also gave assurances in the face of the "expectations" of his superiors, claiming that all 8 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers under his command would "line up" to the South China Sea to carry out "freedom of navigation" missions and "cross the Taiwan Strait." Judging from the situation that during the PLA exercise, the US surface ships, including aircraft carriers, only dared to hide in the waters outside the exercise area, although they were unwilling to admit it on the surface, the US military was very clear that within the first island chain, the comparison of Sino-US maritime military forces has been tilted toward China, and the US military has not much chance of winning.
Therefore, in the context of the PLA's regular combat readiness patrols around the Taiwan Strait, the US aircraft carrier and the "lightning aircraft carrier," such as large surface ships with poor speed and slow maneuverability, once they break into the Taiwan Strait without permission, will become the "targets" of all kinds of anti-ship weapons of the PLA. Therefore, destroyers with greater mobility and complete combat systems have become the only option for the US military, that is, when the US military crosses the Taiwan Strait, Menor will become the main opponent of the PLA.
However, it should be reminded that the PLA's 055 large destroyers, combat capabilities have fully surpassed the Seventh Fleet's Burke-class destroyers, and even the new destroyers of the US military have copied the design idea of 055, which also shows that the US military recognizes the 055 combat strength, so the Burke-class destroyers have not been able to make any waves in front of the PLA, not to mention that the PLA has many anti-ship means on land, sea and air.
Judging from the recent military movements of the US military, the "Tripoli" "lightning aircraft carrier" has been deployed in the northeast coastal waters of Taiwan Island, which can provide air support at any time once the US warships and planes cross the Taiwan Strait, and the newly appointed commander of the combat forces of the Seventh Fleet has also clamored to "sail through the Taiwan Strait." He has also chosen to hand over command on the "Benford" that has recently invaded China's Xisha territorial waters and the Taiwan Strait, which is particularly provocative to China. Friends come with good wine, the jackal comes, and the only thing that greets it is shotguns, and this time the PLA will take different countermeasures against US warships and aircraft, which is worth looking forward to.