Britain urges the West to be ready to flex military muscle in the Pacific as US Navy steps up activities in South China Sea

Western powers should be prepared to back their interests with military power just as Britain is prepared to send its new aircraft carrier to the Pacific, British Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said on Monday.

Speaking in London at the Royal United Services Institute, a British think tank, Williamson said Western allies must be prepared to “use hard power to support our interests”, and failing to intervene against aggressive foreign powers “risks our nation being seen as little more than a paper tiger”.

He confirmed that the HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Navy’s only active aircraft carrier, was being deployed to the Pacific, where China has been involved in a dispute over territorial claims in the South China Sea.

He said the carrier, which will become the centrepiece of Britain’s navy when it enters service by 2020, would take part in the mission along with F-35 jets from both Britain and the United States, adding that Britain should increase the “mass and lethality” of the country’s forces.

Williamson’s hardline message came as the US Navy steps up its activities in the South China Sea. On Monday, the US destroyers USS Spruance and USS Preble entered waters within 12 nautical miles of Mischief Reef, a Chinese-controlled artificial island in the disputed Spratlys.