US deploys nuclear warship STRIKE FORCE in major warning to China
US WARSHIPS have sailed into disputed waters in defiance of China amid continuing tensions over the South China Sea.
By Henry Holloway
DailyStar.co.uk
26th February 2018
Nuclear-powered supercarrier USS Carl Vinson passed through the region accompanied by its strike group of destroyers and cruisers.
The ship’s commanding officer Captain Doug Verissimo said the deployment was a show of “resolve” by the US.
China claims the South China Sea as its own by right – ownership disputed by the US and their allies in Asia.
Warships and warplanes have been flooding into the region amid growing tensions and fears of conflict.
Beijing has been transforming the region into a fortress as it builds up a series of manmade islands packed with missiles and aircraft.
USS Carl Vinson weighs 101,300 tons and carries up to 90 warplanes and helicopters.
It is crewed by up to 6,000 men from the US Navy and is the centrepiece of the US’s strike group leading their Third Fleet.
Famously it is the ship to which Osama bin Laden’s body was shipped after he was killed, and the spot on the deck where his body was placed is marked with red paint.
Captain Verissimo said: “When they put a carrier strike group somewhere it helps to show that the United States is interested.
“We don’t have a lot of these, so when you put one in a certain area it has some influence.
“Of course it also gives our diplomats time and space to negotiate and make decisions, ultimately to try and prevent any type of armed conflict.”
The Rest…HERE
