US carrier strike group dispatched to South China Sea 

中國開兩會 美航母戰鬥群進南海

By Camille Diola (philstar.com) | Updated March 4, 2016 - 10:26am

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In this Jan. 15, 2016 photo, sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) man the rails as the ship gets underway for a Western Pacific deployment from Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Washington. This is the first deployment for Stennis after having gone through a dry dock period at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility. US Navy photo/Released

MANILA, Philippines — A US Navy unit moved into the disputed waters of the South China Sea this week in what US media outlets deemed a show of force in the region.
Quoting US Navy officials, the Washington Times reported that the carrier strike group USS John C. Stennis, with its 7,000 sailors, arrived in the strategic waterway on Tuesday. Cruiser USS Mobile Bay and the destroyers USS Stockdale and USS Chung-Hoon are part of the group accompanying the carrier for the patrol.

Based on releases of US Navy in the past 24 hours, the USS Stennis cited "South China Sea" on its dateline and showed its crew conducting advancement exams, damage control drills and giving out "sailor of the day" awards aboard the carrier.
Cmdr. Clay Doss, spokesperson of the 7th Fleet, downplayed the visit as a posture to counter that of China, which has been criticized for militarizing the contested region.

Aviation Ordnanceman 3rd Class Jose Martinez, from Land O' Lakes, Fla., sets up a long-range acoustic device on USS John C. Stennis' (CVN 74) fantail while in the South China Sea on Tuesday, March 2, 2016.  US Navy/Kenneth Rodriguez Santiago/Released

"Our ships and aircraft operate routinely throughout the Western Pacific—including the South China Sea—and have for decades," Doss said, as cited in a Navy Times report. "In 2015 alone, Pacific Fleet ships sailed about 700 combined days in the South China Sea."
The strike group traversed the Philippine Sea in late February, during which Japan's Murasame-class destroyer JDS Samidare visited it. On February 4, the group crossed the International Date Line into the US 7th Fleet's area of operations, a few weeks after its deployment from Washington in mid-January.
Capt. Michael Wettlaufer, the Stennis's commanding officer, calls the aircraft carrier the "world's finest." Its crew also described the warship as having "more high-tech ordnance than flavors of jellybeans."
Earlier this week, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter warned China of "specific consequences" from its actions in the South China Sea, where the emerging Asian power recently placed anti-access systems and military aircraft.
"The United States wants every nation to have the opportunity to rise and that includes China. We welcome its rise and its inclusion in this architecture. But we don't welcome aggressive behavior," Carter said in San Francisco.
"Indeed, while some in the region appear determined to play spoiler, the United States and our many friends in the region don't plan on letting anyone upend seven decades' worth of progress," he added.
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中國開兩會 美航母戰鬥群進南海

 2016-03-05 〔編譯周虹汶／綜合報導〕中國本週召開兩會，美國海軍三日證實，二月起部署在西太平洋的「史坦尼斯號」（USS John C. Stennis）航空母艦戰鬥群已在一日抵達南海，執行例行巡邏任務。加上第七艦隊旗艦「藍嶺號」（USS Blue Ridge）也正在南海，將前往菲律賓進行訪問，這是美國近期在該區最大規模的軍事行動，彰顯美國捍衛南海航行自由的決心。

• 美國海軍「史坦尼斯號」航空母艦本月一日抵達南海，彰顯美國捍衛該爭議海域的航行自由的決心。圖為史坦尼斯號在太平洋巡弋的檔案照。 （美聯社）

海軍大陣仗 美稱例行巡邏

根據《華盛頓郵報》報導， 美軍太平洋艦隊發言人杜斯表示，自二月四日起部署在西太平洋的史坦尼斯號，率領兩艘驅逐艦「史托克代爾號」（USS Stockdale）與「鍾雲號」 （USS Chung-Hoon），以及一艘巡洋艦「莫比灣號」（USS Mobile Bay），在三月一日抵達南海，展開例行巡邏。
《海軍時報》三日也報導，目前在南海上，美軍還有第七艦隊旗艦藍嶺號兩棲指揮艦與巡洋艦「安提坦號」（USS Antietam）。海軍時報說，安提坦號是接續二月其他美國軍艦的例行巡邏任務，和史坦尼斯號的例行巡邏任務不同。
美軍近期在南海最大陣仗軍事行動儼然成形引起國際關注，但太平洋艦隊發言人杜斯刻意淡化其意義，聲稱美軍機艦早在包括南海在內的西太平洋進行了數十年的例行巡邏，單是去年太平洋艦隊在南海巡弋天數總和就達七百天，未來也將於該海域持續現蹤。

專家：向中宣示 航行自由

不過，專家認為，美國派遣史坦尼斯號航母及其艦載機進入南海，顯然是在向中國發出明確訊號。美國新智庫「新美國安全中心」（ＣＮＡＳ）專家亨德瑞克斯（Jerry Hendrix）認為，美國此舉旨在實踐承諾，以彰顯南海航行自由、美國利益以及無遠弗屆的國力。
美 軍驅逐艦「拉森號」在去年十月進入中國聲稱擁有主權的南海渚碧礁周圍十二浬內海域。今年一月三十日美國又派遣飛彈驅逐艦「柯蒂斯．威爾伯號」前往中國控制 的南海西沙群島中建島十二浬內海域執行航行自由計畫。隨後中國即傳出在西沙永興島部署長程防空飛彈、雷達陣地與進駐戰機的消息。

中國批幌子 轟美炫耀武力

中 國國防部四日晚間表示，中方對有關國家打著航行自由的幌子展示軍力，製造南海軍事化的行動表示關注，這些行動才是導致南海地區局勢緊張的根源。曾任中國外 交部副部長的中國全國人民代表大會發言人傅瑩四日稍早反批美國在南海「炫耀武力」的做法，已「非常刺激中國人的反感情緒」，因此在民眾支持下，中國政府在 當地持續擴建島礁是非常必要的。