USS Chung-Hoon participating in RIMPAC 2006 international naval exercises

In response to this week’s tense interchange between Chinese vessels and a US Navy surveillance vessel operating in international waters in the South China Sea, future surveillance operations will be escorted by destroyers.  Destroyers are designed for both surface combat but also for the specialized mission of detecting and neutralizing submarines.

The USS Chung-Hoon began its escort mission some time on of before yesterday, according to Pentagon officials.  It is unclear how long the USS Chung-Hoon will be deployed to the South China Sea, or whether it will be joined by other Navy ships.

This latest episode adds one more page to a bitter history or international relations between the United States and Communist China, one that increased economic interdependence has not been able to improve.

(This story comes by way of our friends at Naval Open Source Intelligence.)

Popularity: 2% [?]