On the 27th, the "Rim of the Pacific 2024" multinational maritime joint military exercise, which is known as the world's largest led by the United States, kicked off, which lasted for one month. The U.S. Pacific Fleet Command announced that RIMPAC 2024 officially kicked off in Hawaii, including 29 countries and regions, sending a total of 40 surface ships, 3 submarines, more than 150 aircraft and more than 25,000 troops to participate.
It is reported that in the list of participating countries, 11 Asian countries, 7 European countries, 3 North American countries, 5 South American countries and 3 Oceania countries. According to a statement released by the U.S. Navy, compared with the strong lineup of 38 ships from 26 countries in 2022, this year's RIMPAC military exercise is larger in scale, including the participation of the United Kingdom, France, Brazil, Israel and other countries.
This year's military exercises include multinational amphibious landings, anti-submarine warfare, and multi-ship surface warfare, as well as "multi-axis defense" by the US Navy's aircraft carrier strike group against live-fire forces. The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group arrived at Pearl Harbor and is the largest warship in this exercise, which can carry more than 60 fighters, including carrier-based early warning aircraft and F/A-18E/F "Super Hornet" fighters, as well as the most powerful fifth-generation F-35C stealth carrier-based aircraft in the US military.
In addition to the military exercise itself, the "sinking" course is the highlight of this year's RIMPAC military exercise. In other words, the participants use anti-ship weapons to carry out live strikes against target ships. The highlight of this year's military exercise was that the US military and many countries used various anti-ship weapons to sink the US Navy's retired amphibious assault ship "Tarawa".
According to the U.S. theater website, this is the first time in 10 years that the RIMPAC exercise has used an amphibious assault ship as a target ship. The US media unabashedly pointed out that the use of the "Tarawa" amphibious assault ship as a target ship in this RIMPAC military exercise is a response to China's development of aircraft carriers and large amphibious assault ships, as well as the deployment of the PLA around the Taiwan Strait.
Obviously, the US media's statement is very clear in and out of the words, and this move is for China to see. The US military stated that the live-fire exercise provides realistic training and the sinking of amphibious assault ships is the ability to provide precision strikes and long-range strikes for the US military and other countries. Looking at the world, there are very few countries equipped with aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and Britain, France, and other countries have participated in the Rim of the Pacific military exercise.
The US media pointed out that China is planning to expand its amphibious combat fleet, and there are eight 20,000-ton dock landing ships in service, which have landing combat capabilities. At the same time, the Chinese Navy has three 40,000-ton Type 075 amphibious assault ships in service and is about to equip the fourth amphibious assault ship, which is very similar in size to the Tarawa-class amphibious assault ship of the US Navy in terms of tonnage and positioning.
In addition to the Type 075 amphibious assault ship, China is developing the Type 076 amphibious assault ship, a new type of amphibious assault ship with tonnage involved in the "Type 075" amphibious assault ship and the "Fujian" aircraft carrier, with a wide deck area, can be equipped with catapults and interdiction devices, and carry unmanned combat aircraft and other fixed-wing UAVs, including an aviation wing. The US military wants to practice striking China's amphibious assault ships, and it is most suitable to directly move out the 40,000-ton "Tarawa" amphibious assault ship to act as a simulated Chinese amphibious assault ship.
Before and after RIMPAC 2024, the U.S. military will hold multiple rounds of military exercises in the Asia-Pacific region, including the "Valiant Shield" military exercise with the participation of the United States, Japan, Australia, France and New Zealand, and will also hold joint military exercises such as "Pitch Black" and "Kakadu" with allies. Therefore, RIMPAC 2024 has a very strong deterrent connotation against China.
Against the backdrop of the US military's military exercises, the Shandong aircraft carrier formation of our military approached Luzon Island in the Philippines, crossed the Bass Strait with a high probability, and rushed to the western Pacific Ocean for ocean-going training. At such a delicate moment, the Shandong warship went to the western Pacific for training, which happened to reiterate with the US military exercises, indicating that it was a positive response to the US military in the Asia-Pacific region in the near future.
Lu Lishi, former captain of the Taiwan Navy, believes that there is only one answer to the Shandong ship's heading for the western Pacific, that is, to cooperate with the PLA military planes to encircle Taiwan from the north, the center, and the south, and then achieve a comprehensive encirclement of Taiwan. PLA military planes have conducted three consecutive high-intensity combat readiness patrols in the Taiwan Strait, encircling Taiwan Island 270 degrees.
Second, the Shandong warship out of the Bass Strait training is likely to simulate the US Navy's aircraft carrier attack, using the Shandong ship as a simulated ship, and the PLA dispatching fighters, bombers and auxiliary models, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles, for the PLA to conduct maritime offensive and defensive exercises, which is also a response to the US military's use of the Rim of the Pacific military exercise to rehearse the sinking of the amphibious assault ship "Tarawa".
In the face of the aggressive posture of the US military in the Asia-Pacific region, Wu Qian, spokesman for the Mainland Defense Department, said that the Chinese do not cause trouble but are not afraid of it, and have always been "people do not offend me, I do not offend people; If anyone offends me, I will offend them." However, if the United States touches the "red line," it will be subjected to a thunderous counterattack by the PLA.