U.S. conducts military maneuvers off Guam

[falcon]

U.S. conducts military maneuvers off Guam

Staff and agencies
20 June, 2006


By ERIC TALMADGE, Associated Press Writer 23 minutes ago
HAGATNA, Guam - Three aircraft carriers filled the skies with fighters Tuesday as one of the largest U.S. military exercises in decades got underway off this tiny island in the western Pacific.


For the first time ever, a Chinese delegation was invited to observe the U.S. war games. But as the show of American military power began, North Korea — one of the region‘s most unpredictable countries — was rattling some swords of its own.


The exercises are intended to boost the ability of the Navy, Air Force and Marines to work together and respond quickly to potential contingencies in this part of the world, U.S. military officials said. Even U.S. Coast Guard U.S. Coast Guard vessels were joining in the maneuvers.


The maneuvers mark the first major operation in this remote U.S. territory about halfway between Hawaii and Japan since the announcement last month that some 8,000 Marines would be moved here from Okinawa as part of the biggest realignment of U.S. forces in Asia in decades.


Officials in the United States, South Korea and Japan say they believe North Korea is preparing to test launch a Taepodong 2 long-range ballistic missile. The missile is believed to be able to reach parts of the western United States.


North Korean leader Kim Jong-il agreed on a moratorium on long-range missile launches during a summit with Japan in 1999. Pyongyang has honored that agreement since, but Tokyo has threatened to impose sanctions if it goes through with a launch this time.


They stress, however, that the exercises have been opened to outside observation and are not intended to provoke North Korea.


The exercises are instead intended to provide training in "detecting, locating, tracking and engaging" a wide range of threats in the air, land and sea.
China‘s presence has been singled out as particularly significant.


Though military relations between Beijing and Washington cooled when an American spy plane was captured in 2001, senior U.S. military officials are cautiously trying to mend the rift. At the same time, the Pentagon has expressed strong concern over the secrecy that shrouds China‘s rapidly modernizing military.


China‘s 10-member delegation includes one top-ranking officer each from the People‘s Liberation Army, air force and navy, the official Xinhua News Agency said Tuesday.
"The invitation to observe the U.S. military exercises is a very important component of exchanges between the militaries of China and the United States," Xinhua quoted an unidentified Defense Ministry official as saying.


Along with the USS Kitty Hawk, Ronald Reagan and Abraham Lincoln carrier strike groups, U.S. fighters and B-2 bombers operating out of Guam‘s Andersen Air Force Base will join the maneuvers.


Brown said the exercises were to be held again next year, and then become a biennial event.

http://www.newsone.ca/ottawarecorder...news&id=196482






he USS Abraham Lincoln, USS Kitty Hawk and USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike groups steam in formation during a joint photo exercise (PHOTOEX) in preparation for Valiant Shield 2006 on Sunday, June 18, 2006, in the Pacific Ocean. The PHOTOEX featured 14 ships as well as 17 aircraft from Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corp including a B2 bomber. The Kitty Hawk Carrier Strike Group is currently participating in Valiant Shield 2006, the largest joint exercise in recent history. Held in the Guam operating area beginning June 19-23, the exercise involves 28 Naval vessels including three carrier strike groups, more than 300 aircraft and more than 20,000 service members from the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy, Jarod Hodge)

[Ryan Ruck]

China Pleased After Watching U.S. Wargames

SHANGHAI, China - Chinese military observers said Thursday that observing U.S. military exercises in the Pacific this week gave them a better understanding of U.S. weapons and tactics.

Delegation leader Rear Adm. Zhang Leiyu called the visit to the war games near Guam "a positive step in China-U.S. military ties," the official Xinhua News agency reported.

It was the first time a delegation from China had been invited to officially observe U.S. maneuvers in the Pacific, where China and the U.S. face potential conflicts over Taiwan.

"The visit helped China obtain a better understanding of U.S. weapons, training, skills and exercise arrangements," said Zhang, a navy vice chief of staff and commandant of China's Naval Submarine Academy.

Dubbed "Valiant Shield," the exercises brought three carriers together in the Pacific for the first time since the Vietnam War. Some 30 ships, 280 aircraft and 22,000 troops participated in the five-day war games, which ended Thursday.

Zhang's assessment of the exercises will likely be welcomed by exchange advocates, who argue Chinese exposure to advanced U.S. capabilities reduces the chances of misunderstandings or clashes.

However, the comments may arouse concern among exchange opponents. They say China gains valuable information about the U.S. military without giving away anything in return about their own 2.3 million-member armed forces — the world's largest.

Adm. William J. Fallon, the top U.S. commander in the Pacific who invited the Chinese delegation, said before the exercises began that he expected China to reciprocate. However, neither Zhang or the Xinhua report gave any indication that such an invitation was forthcoming.

The two countries' militaries have had their share of friction in the past, including fighting against each other in the Korean War. In 1996, the U.S. Navy sent two aircraft carrier battle groups to the waters near Taiwan amid Chinese war games to intimidate the self-governing island, whose defense Washington is legally bound to assist.

China and Taiwan split in 1949 amid civil war, and Beijing has threatened to attack if the island continues to resist unification.

This week's maneuvers were part of U.S. efforts to reinvigorate exchanges between the two militaries, which have had little interaction since a U.S. spy plane collided with a Chinese jet fighter over the South China Sea in 2001.

Later Thursday, Xinhua said China is "open" to military exchanges with the United States, and that it is willing to promote bilateral defense and security cooperation, citing remarks by Chinese State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan.

Tang made the remarks following a meeting with a delegation of the American Foreign Policy Council, a nonprofit organization. The delegation was led by retired Gen. Richard Myers, former chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Xinhua said.