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https://theconversation.com/australia-can-no-longer-afford-to-ignore-russias-expanding-naval-power-in-the-pacific-217913>
"China’s expanding naval presence in the Pacific Ocean and the South and East
China seas has become a major focus for Australia, the US and its allies.
Australia’s latest strategic defence review, for instance, was prompted, in
part, by the rapid modernisation of China’s military, as well as its increasing
naval presence in the South China Sea.
According to the US Department of Defence’s most recent annual report to
Congress, China’s navy has been strengthened with the addition of 30 new
warships over the past 12 months. By 2030, the total number of ships is
expected to increase to 435, up from the current 370.
But China is not the only potentially adversarial maritime power that is
flexing its muscles in the Indo-Pacific region. Russia is becoming a cause for
concern, too, even though the 2023 strategic review did not mention it.
My latest research project,
Battle Reading the Russian Pacific Fleet
2023–2030, recently commissioned and published by the Royal Australian Navy,
shows how deeply the Russian military is investing in replenishing its ageing,
Soviet-era Pacific Fleet.
Between 2022 and October 2023, for instance, it commissioned eight new warships
and auxiliaries, including four nuclear-powered and conventional submarines. On
December 11, two new nuclear-powered submarines formally joined the fleet, in
addition to the conventional RFS Mozhaisk submarine, which entered service last
month.
These figures may not look as impressive as the new Chinese vessels mentioned
above, but it’s important to recognise that the Russian Navy has the unique
challenge of simultaneously addressing the needs of four fleets (in the Arctic
and Pacific oceans and Black and Baltic seas), plus its Caspian Sea flotilla.
Furthermore, Russia’s war in Ukraine has not had a considerable impact on the
Pacific Fleet’s ongoing modernisation or its various exercises and other
activities. Between early 2022 and October 2023, for instance, the Pacific
Fleet staged eight strategic-level naval exercises, in addition to numerous
smaller-scale activities."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
