Coronavirus Fragments 2: All Eyes on the Pacific

"The littoral combat ship Montgomery conducted a freedom of navigation operation, or FONOP, near contested South China Sea islands on Sunday, [26 January 2020] officials said." Image Source: Navy Times.

One of the less-reported aspects of the coronavirus epidemic is the ramping up of US Navy manoeuvres in the South China Sea. For years, the Chinese have been dominating the South China Sea, to the consternation of other countries.

"A satellite image of Fiery Cross Reef in Spratly island chain in the South China Sea. Image Source: Maxar Technologies via AP/New Zealand Herald.

Image Source: Wiki.

Exclusive dispatch from USS Ronald Reagan in the South China Sea as tensions rise (21 October 2019). Video Source: Youtube.

The sandbars, along with swarmings of Chinese vessels in foreign waters, and the construction of hundreds of Chinese airports, have all recently alarmed many countries, even raising eyebrows in Australia and New Zealand. In 2019, Clive Palmer's United Australia Party ran a scare ad about a Chinese private airport, built in Karratha, West Australia, which seemingly has clandestine military capability. This ad was attacked by the UAP's political opponents as fear-mongering.

Australia - Protect Our Future - Watch Now (7 February 2019). Video Source: Youtube.

On 25 January 2020, the Pacific Fleet of the US Navy conducted 'freedom of navigation operation' exercises (an 'FONOP'). Amid Coronavirus Outbreak : US Navy Challenges China In The South China Sea With Largest Operation (8 February 2020). Video Source: Youtube.

High Alert (Feb 7, 2020): China Wins the South China Sea War Against Philippine in the Region (7 February 2020). Video Source: Youtube.

During the coronavirus outbreak in late January 2020, the US Navy conducted freedom of navigation operation exercises in the South China Sea.

To understand the importance of the Pacific to the Americans, note that their (potentially) most powerful warship, the USS Zumwalt, the lead ship of the Zumwalt class, has its home port in San Diego, California.

The Zumwalts were meant to become the most terrifying high-tech warships in the world, but their multi-billion-dollar cost and design problems led to scaled back numbers (from thirty-three to only three ships) and their repurposing as 'ship killers' at extended ranges, rather than their original intended use as land invasion ships. Huge expenses and teething problems provoked a lot of criticism. Due to costs, their weapons systems were scaled back, which led some to call them 'Dumwalts,' and caused loud moaning in naval circles. One Youtuber remarked:

"Please for the love of Poseidon [start making] true fighting ships again."

Inside the Stealth Destroyer USS Zumwalt, the Warship That Runs on Linux (20 August 2017). Video Source: Youtube.

Nevertheless, the Zumwalts are still some of the most formidable destroyers that exist - or they would be if they were designed as planned. Critics consider them to be more like cruisers, not destroyers. The Zumwalts have their own server farms and intended stealth capabilities in deep water combat, guided missile destruction, and in anti-aircraft and anti-submarine warfare. It perhaps would be accurate to perceive them as a pioneering initiative to turn a giant weaponized computer into a warship.

One Youtuber cleverly suspected that the mixed messages about the Zumwalts aired by military news outlets are intended to deceive all observers about the true nature of the destroyers' final capabilities:

"us navy is putting out all this negative shit as propaganda so that no fucker knows the reality of Zumwalt."

That may be true. You only need to look at competition in the USA as well as other countries, that is, all the other top destroyer warships in the world, to see that the Zumwalt is a new kind of sea creature. Imagine having this thing coming at you in the open ocean. The Americans are masterful at deceptive self-presentation when they want to safeguard their innovations. The Zumwalts are intended to dominate global-level blue water warfare in the Pacific in the 2020s. They are part of the American effort to retain their current position as having the strongest and most capable navy in the world.

USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) Time Lapse and Sea Trial (26 May 2016). Video Source: Youtube.