The US Navy will establish a new presence in Singapore as a staging location for its latest class of warship.
Defence Secretary Robert Gates announced plans for the presence during his visit to Singapore last week. Gates’ current Asian tour is his last. After five years heading the world’s most powerful military, he will step down on June 30.
‘We’ve taken a number of steps towards establishing a defence posture across the Asia-Pacific that is more geographically distributed, operationally resilient and politically sustainable,’ Gates said.
According to the Singaporean Defence Ministry, those steps include deploying to Singapore ‘one or two’ of the new Littoral Combat Ships current under construction in the United States. The 400-foot-long, high-speed warships, optimized for shallow-water operations, would be the first US military vessels permanently stationed in the tiny Southeast Asian country, although the Navy for many years has maintained a support facility there.
The Littoral Combat Ships are short-range vessels compared with the destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers that make up the bulk of the Navy's 280-strong battle fleet. Typically, US warships on deployment in the Pacific sail from California or Japan and periodically receive supplies from supply vessels while on the move. The Littoral Combat Ships would require far more frequent resupplying than other vessels, making forward deployment to Singapore particularly attractive for them.
Perhaps coincidentally, the Singapore basing announcement comes at a time when China could be planning for its first overseas naval base -- in Gwadar, western Pakistan. ‘We have asked our Chinese brothers to please build a naval base at Gwadar,’ Pakistan Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar said.
Beijing denied Mukhtar's assertion.
Regardless, China's rapid naval modernization, including nuclear submarines and a refurbished aircraft carrier, now has a clear US response. The US Navy is meeting China’s naval expansion with an expansion of its own.
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Matt
Singapore is one of Australia’s greatest allies, Australia is required to defend them as they would defend Australia if under attack. So a US base will make them happy as the burden will become heavier for both Australia and Singapore in the future and a US presence will alleviate that to a degree.
But it is not ideal for interception out Hainan Island. But the 50 JSF come in handy making up the 150 required. The US want to sell 500 to 600 stealth fighters in the region. So making up the additional 50 whether they are US or other nations would not be a problem.
Planes can be run out of Singapore but you need air to air refueling and constant deployment so you can close the gap for interception. Too expensive, in Malaysia you can scramble.
The Straits of Malacca are a different strategic matter, Singapore is a perfect location to keep trade routes open as are 50 JSF, depending on cost Singapore wanted 100 JSF. Personally I think the LCS are junk but they suite that purpose to a degree.
Robert Tan
What a lot of baloney!
Singapore agreeing to become another American base for their hegemony?
You are stuck in the sixties.
We Sings are too smart to be used by any big powers.
Our foreign policy is to make more friends, not enemies.
So, expect us to behave more like Switzerland with a neutrality biased outlook.
John Chan
Singapore needs to defend herself, but the younger generation must remember that their grandparents and their parents have been suppressed and exploited by the imperialist white from the Europe; they shall never give up their independence which was hard earned by their ancestors, because the White has repackaged the snake oil of re-colonization under a nice wrapping of common security needs.
Establish alliance to enhance Singapore’s independence is prudent action, but be fooled by the local region hegemony Australia and global hegemony USA without a wary mind is asking to be enslaved again. If the unfortunate happens, the younger generation of Singaporeans have to ask themselves how are they going to explain themselves to their ancestor that they lost their independence because their arrogance, ignorance and naiveté?
F-35 is a Robe Goldberg system, Canada ordered 65 F-35 for 9 billion baseline price and the compulsory service charge of 300 million a year. The government cannot tell what is the total cost, because there is no cap on the cost of F-35 until the F-35 is delivered.
Singapore will no doubt have a latest model of jet fighter in Asia if they buy F-35. Please use the above information wisely when Singapore is going to make her decision on F-35, and don’t let the Australian and the American sell you snake oil without knowing
Singaporean Boy
Yes, we will never allow the USA or others to establish a base in Singapore.
Friends, Yes, but having a base on our tiny island is a definite No!
We Sings are friends to all and all who call port on our island.
captaingrumpy
I served in the Royal Australian Navy for twenty years.Every port that Americans had been was ruined for the tourists and visiting ships alike.America only pays it’s men when they reach port and the amount of money that have to spend is really out of this world.It ruins the local economy because prices rise by more than 300% when the shop owners see the American Sailors coming.When they leave the shop owners rarely reduce the prices fully,so tourism is affected.The bars are the same and the”bar girls” increase tenfold.American sailors don’t care about the prices,they just pay them and the scams go on.
I was relieved when we visited ports that the US had not beeen to.The violence was real in the US ports ,causing fear amongst the other nations services.I know of several cases of US sailors being stabbed when a US ship was in port and this was not fair on the other Navies in port.All in all ,the Yanks spoil the nice spots.
Ray
And when China stops lending the US money to build bases and systems to station around the world? They will assert control.