The British Royal Navy recently posted photos of its HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier strike group on social media, demonstrating the core maritime force it is determined to form. According to an official agreement previously signed by the British and American defense officials, a combined strike group, led by the aircraft carrier Queen Elizabeth, will be deployed to the Asia-Pacific in the spring of 2021.
London’s decision to merge forces with Washington to form a new carrier strike group has captured extensive attention. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the parliament, “Next year HMS Queen Elizabeth will lead a British and allied task group on our most ambitious deployment for two decades, encompassing the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean and East Asia, where we will carry out joint military exercises and patrols with our allied naval ships.”
There are two reasons why the UK is eager to deploy its newly formed combat force to the Asia Pacific. For one thing, it is intensifying its “presence” by enhancing and showcasing its military strengths and participating in global hotspot issues. Worried about its increasing isolation from the international community since Brexit, the country is anxious to restore its international standing in a proactive or even aggressive posture. In 2019, the then Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said Britain might build new military bases in the South China Sea and the Caribbean Sea, which would get his country back to the international stage as a ’true global player’. Läs artikel