The US will continue to work with allies to counter Beijing’s growing maritime capabilities, Washington’s new chief of naval operations said.
The Indo-Pacific region “remains America’s foremost priority,” Admiral Lisa Franchetti said at an online briefing Friday from South Korea as she wrapped up a weeklong visit to the region.
“By operating together, continuing to build our interoperability through exercise, training and planning, the United States and all of its allies and partners will continue to deter China and other potential adversaries around the world,” she said.
The US and China have recently tried to stabilize ties, with Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping meeting earlier this month, but disagreements on issues like chips exports and the South China Sea persist.
This week, the US restarted patrols with the Philippines in the South China Sea. The US Navy will pursue operations and planning with Manila, and possibly expand activities with like-minded partners, said Franchetti, the first woman to be a US military service chief.
Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. told reporters in Manila on Friday that “there will be several iterations of joint patrols” with the US, which may happen “this year, next year and the succeeding years.”
In response to the US-Philippines patrols, China’s People’s Liberation Army Southern Theater Command said Thursday in a WeChat statement that the troop will stay on high alert for the country’s security, stability, and maritime rights in the region.
Regarding China’s “recent provocations, dangerous maneuvers” against US aircraft and ships operating in the South China Sea, Franchetti said Washington is “committed to preserving the rights of all nations to fly, sail and operate safely and responsibly wherever international law allows.”
--With assistance from Wenshan Luo.
(Adds Philippine defense chief’s comments in sixth paragraph.)
