At a time of tension in the South China Sea, the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines held their first joint maritime military exercises in the South China Sea. And the move is clearly aimed at China and will increase tensions in the South China Sea, so it has attracted widespread attention. But the embarrassing thing is that I originally thought that the scale of the military exercise would be large, but the actual situation was shocking. In the four-nation joint military exercise held on 7 July, the United States dispatched only one littoral combat ship, Japan dispatched a destroyer, Australia dispatched a frigate, and the Philippines dispatched only two cruiser-type ships. With only five ships, there are not many ripples in the vast South China Sea. And the exercise lasted less than a day before it was hastily over.
(The picture shows the military exercises of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines)
In order to respond to the provocations of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines, the Southern Theater of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) announced that it would hold a joint combat patrol on the same day, which mainly included fighter patrols and alerts, joint naval and air assaults, and combat readiness patrols of warships. The Southern Theater also openly stated on social media that a certain regiment of the theater's naval aviation focused on actual combat and organized cross-day and night-time flight training, maritime patrol vigilance, anti-submarine flight and other exercises, and constantly improved the unit's ability to quickly dispatch and conduct all-weather submarine attack operations. The hasty conclusion of the military exercises of the United States, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines may be related to the PLA's tough statement.
(The picture shows the PLA Navy military exercise)
Judging from the content of the exercise, there are obvious differences between the two sides. The main contents of the military exercises of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines are anti-submarine, communications, and formations. The real threat is actually anti-submarine, but it is precisely the Philippine ships that do not have the relevant capabilities. There is a high probability that the military exercise will be a performance by the United States and Japan, and it will not have any practical significance. Correspondingly, China's drills are much more hard-core, with fighter planes patrolling and alerting, joint naval and air assaults, and warship formations patrolling in combat readiness. Obviously, it is to prepare for naval confrontation and to deter the United States and Japan.
(The picture shows the high-tech No. 6 anti-submarine aircraft)
It is worth noting that in the exercise footage released by the Southern Theater, the Gaoxin No. 6 anti-submarine patrol plane also appeared. This is currently one of the most advanced anti-submarine aircraft in the world, with a flight speed of up to 660 km / h and a range of up to 5,600 km. The anti-submarine depth is 600 meters, and the width is more than 100 kilometers. In order to effectively deal with submarines, Gaoxin 6 is equipped with surround sea surface search radar, hydrodynamic reconnaissance system, magnetic anomaly detector and other equipment. U.S. submarines are quite active in the South China Sea, and Gaoxin-6 can effectively contain them. The display of such fighters may also be one of the main reasons for forcing the four-nation military exercise to end in a hurry.
Almost all of the islands and reefs in the South China Sea under the Philippines' actual control have been encroached upon through various illegal means. It may be that they realize that their actions are unreasonable, or they are afraid of angering China. The Philippine side has repeatedly clarified the military exercises, and the Philippine Department of Defense said that the military exercises of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines are not aimed at China. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. also said that the Philippines will continue to communicate with China, even in direct dialogue with China's high-level leaders, to avoid heightened tensions in the South China Sea. The Philippines may have realized that it is unable to confront China, and the support of the United States, Japan and other countries is quite limited, so it took the initiative to seek peace with China.
(Pictured is Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.)
However, China is well aware that the Philippines, with the support of the United States, has continuously launched provocations, posing a threat to mainland sovereignty and regional peace and stability, so it has chosen military exercises to respond. The Southern Theater also stressed that the theater troops will continue to strengthen training and preparation for war in order to resolutely defend national sovereignty and security. The insistence of countries such as the Philippines and the United States and Japan will only force China to respond with a tougher approach. The main purpose of the United States, Japan, Australia, the Philippines and other countries is to maintain regional hegemony, while China's goal is to safeguard its own sovereignty, so its attitude will be more resolute and tough.