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By Ryan Chan
China News Reporter
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The United States, along with its NATO and Indo-Pacific allies, has deployed four warships capable of launching F-35 stealth fighter jets for a large-scale exercise at sea near China.
The multilateral war game, which commenced on Monday in the western Pacific, involves the U.S. aircraft carrier USS George Washington, the amphibious assault ship USS America, the British aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales and the Japanese aircraft carrier JS Kaga.
Newsweek has contacted the Chinese Defense Ministry for comment via email.
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Why It Matters
The F-35—manufactured by U.S. defense giant Lockheed Martin—is a family of fighter aircraft with three variants: the A model, designed to operate from conventional runways; the B model, capable of short takeoffs and vertical landings from ships without full-length flight decks; and the C model, designed specifically for deployments aboard aircraft carriers.
The allied F-35 carrier drill comes after China flexed its rapidly growing naval power by simultaneously deploying two aircraft carriers in June on the eastern side of a U.S. defensive line formed by Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines. The Chinese navy, which has the world's largest fleet of warships by hull count, continues to push beyond this island chain.
In response to China's military buildup, the U.S. deployed the George Washington and the America to Japan to maintain its naval presence. While the Prince of Wales is deployed for an eight-month mission, Japan is converting two helicopter carriers—including the Kaga—into aircraft carriers to bolster the defense of its outlying southwestern islands near China.
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What To Know
On Tuesday, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force announced details of the naval drill scheduled to conclude on August 12. In addition to American, British and Japanese warships, the Norwegian and Spanish navies are participating—with their vessels having joined the United Kingdom Carrier Strike Group led by the Prince of Wales in April.
According to U.S. Naval Institute News, both the George Washington and the America were underway in the Philippine Sea on Monday for an exercise code-named Pacific Arsenal.
The George Washington, equipped with F-35C jets, was deployed as part of a carrier strike group alongside a cruiser and a destroyer, while F-35B jets deployed aboard the America.
Meanwhile, a Japanese flotilla led by the Kaga conducted a bilateral drill with the Spanish frigate ESPS Méndez Núñez—which is assigned to the British carrier strike group—in waters south of Japan's main island of Shikoku to the east of the Philippines between July 31 and August 4.
Following its linkup with the Japanese navy, the Spanish warship was en route to rejoin the Prince of Wales for "combined exercises," the Royal Navy said on X on Sunday.
After visiting Australia in late July, the British aircraft carrier and its accompanying vessels embarked on a northbound voyage for visits to South Korea and Japan later this month.
On Tuesday, an animated map by Forces News, the British Forces Broadcasting Service, suggested that the aircraft carrier had reached waters east of the Philippines.
While the Prince of Wales and the Kaga are set to practice combined operations with F-35B jets, according to a Royal Navy announcement, some of the British jets have departed the aircraft carrier for a joint exercise with the South Korean military, Forces News reported.
What People Are Saying
The U.S. Navy wrote in a photo caption on Tuesday: "America, lead ship of the America Amphibious Ready Group, is operating in the U.S. Seventh Fleet area of operations. U.S. Seventh Fleet is the U.S. Navy's largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region."
The Royal Navy said in a news release on July 29: "The next stage of the Carrier Strike Group deployment—codename Operation Highmast—focuses on air operations, with the U.K. force due to link up with a Japanese task group, to practice combined F-35 operations."
Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani wrote in a 2025 defense white paper: "In addition to Japan's own efforts, cooperation and collaboration with our ally and like-minded countries is critical. The Alliance with the United States is a key pillar of our national security policy and the cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region."
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether the U.S. and British F-35B jets deployed aboard the America and the Prince of Wales will land on and take off from the Kaga during the drill. This comes ahead of the arrival of the first four Japanese F-35B jets at their base in Japan on Thursday.
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