US sends nuclear-powered submarines to China’s backyard

The United States has recently sent two of its nuclear-powered submarines to the Western Pacific Ocean, where they visited an island that can project military power against China.

Newsweek has contacted the U.S. Pacific Fleet Submarine Force for comment by email. The Chinese military did not immediately respond to Newsweek‘s request for comment.

Why It Matters

The island of Guam, which is the westernmost U.S. territory, is about 1,500 miles east of the Philippines and south of Japan, making it an ideal staging area to deliver U.S. military power to the contested Taiwan Strait, as well as the East and South China Seas.

Guam is home to American Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps bases. It also forms a blockade known as the second island chain, one of the layers of a U.S. defense concept that seeks to constrain the Chinese military in wartime with allied or friendly territories.

What To Know

Photos released by the U.S. Navy show USS Columbia, a Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine, and USS Vermont, a Virginia-class fast-attack submarine, visited Guam on January 12 and 20, respectively, during their deployments supporting the Seventh Fleet.

This is America’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet and has an operating area that covers the Western Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. It works with allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region, the U.S. Navy said.

Both the Columbia and the Vermont are homeported at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii. They are conventionally armed with Tomahawk cruise missiles that can hit targets on land from 1,000 miles away, as well as torpedoes to sink hostile ships and submarines.

Guam upgraded its fast-attack submarine force last November. The Submarine Squadron 15, which is based on the island, received its first-ever Virginia-class submarine, USS Minnesota, in addition to the four older Los Angeles-class submarines.

The U.S. fleet of fast-attack submarines is a major threat to the Chinese navy, which is the world’s largest by hull count, Brian Hart, deputy director and fellow of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Newsweek previously.

While China is investing in its submarine fleet and in anti-submarine warfare capabilities, there is still a “considerable capability gap” in this area that favors the U.S., Hart added.

What People Are Saying

The U.S. Navy said: “Fast-attack submarines are multi-mission platforms enabling five of the six Navy maritime strategy core capabilities—sea control, power projection, forward presence, maritime security and deterrence.”

The Submarine Squadron 15 of the U.S. Navy, which is based at Naval Base Guam, said: “Guam’s fast-attack submarines serve as the backbone of the Navy’s submarine force, ensuring readiness and agility in safeguarding maritime interests around the world.”

What Happens Next

It remains to be seen whether the U.S. Navy will further upgrade Guam’s submarine force by stationing more advanced Virginia-class submarines on the strategic island.