Opinion | Donald Trump’s intimidation of Iran with US Navy movements in the Persian Gulf risks weakening its South China Sea operations
- The US Navy is in danger of spreading itself too thin, given that its warships also patrol the Mediterranean and the Black Sea
- In the South China Sea, the US needs the support of its allies and like-minded countries
The Trump administration said the deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group and the amphibious transport dock USS Arlington in the region was aimed at protecting American military and commercial interests from potential threats from Iran. However, it did not say that such a move had the side effect of weakening the US Navy’s ability to operate in the China seas and across the Taiwan Strait, where Chinese naval forces are challenging American pre-eminence.
But the increase of US naval operations in the Persian Gulf, coupled with the constant presence of American warships in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea to counter Russia, could well overstretch the capabilities of the US Navy.
The US government has limited budget resources it can draw on to move from the current 280 vessels towards the 355-ship fleet the Trump administration has planned. Furthermore, the deployment of assets and resources in multiple fronts, and not just in selected flashpoints such as the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait, is also considered a vulnerability.
To offset the operational shortcomings of its navy and multiply the strength of its fleet in the Indo-Pacific while dealing with crises in other parts of the globe, the US needs the material help of allies and like-minded countries concerned with China’s rapid military rise.