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| The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier battle group along with ships from Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, and South Korea during RIMPAC 2000 |
The first time I heard the word RIMPAC was when I watched the movie BATTLESHIP the battle for earth begins at sea, it is an American military science fiction film directed by Peter Berg and released by Universal Pictures. The film stars Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgård, Rihanna, John Tui, Brooklyn Decker and Tadanobu Asano.
The RIMPAC is a naval exercise under simulated conditions of war which being carried out in the Hawaiian waters of the Pacific Ocean. It is the largest international maritime warfare exercise in the Pacific Rim. The objective of the RIMPAC is to enhance interoperability between Pacific Rim armed forces, ostensibly as a means of promoting stability in the region to the benefit of all participating nations. It is a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain the cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world’s oceans.
This event is always held every two years from the month of June and July and the regular participants from this events are from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US). Other regular participants are Chile, Colombia, France, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Peru, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, and the UK. The Royal New Zealand Navy was frequently involved until the 1985 ANZUS nuclear ships dispute, but has taken part in recent RIMPACs such as in 2012 and will return to the exercise this season 2014.
China's Participation To RIMPAC
China before was invited as an observer but this season they will participate in an actual maritime simulations which draw many speculation from the expert because of China's expansion campaign on the South China Sea. Roger Cliff, an analyst at Washington's Atlantic Council think tank, said Washington may also hope China will reciprocate by inviting the US Navy to participate in a PLA Navy exercise. But he said China was likely to gain more from RIMPAC than it gave away.
"They will ... learn from observing us and the other participants, and they will not only learn about our capabilities, they will also learn how to perform things more efficiently or effectively, whereas they probably don't have much to teach us in that regard," he said.
This notion coming from Roger Cliff made me think that if China will actively participate in a maritime simulation game the People's Liberation Army Navy of China (PLANC) can observe the strategies and tactics of their potential enemy in case tension escalate in South and East China Sea. They can be more effective naval offensive or defensive forces if they will be an imaginary enemy of this drill. So probably they will learn more than the regular participants of the RIMPAC. The People's Liberation Army Navy of China are expected to send four of their ships to the exercise, a destroyer, frigate, supply ship, & hospital ship.
Royal New Zealand Navy and RIMPAC
On February 1985 New Zealand did not support the ban on nuclear armed and nuclear power ships which resulted to cancellation of trilateral military exercise or ANZUS and because of this the Royal New Zealand Navy was also suspended to join the RIMPAC but until 2010 when secretary of state Hillary Clinton visit, the dispute was put to an end and New Zealand resumed her military cooperation. On September 20, 2012 the US lifts her ban on visits by New Zealand warships to US defence and coast guard bases around the world; US Marines had trained in New Zealand and New Zealand's navy took part in the Rimpac maritime exercise alongside the US earlier that year.
People's Leberation Army of China and RIMPAC
The RIMPAC exercises come at a time when tensions are high between Beijing and US allies such as Japan and the Philippines over China's pressing of territorial claims in the South and East China Seas and Vietnamese vessels have clashed with China over waters claimed by both nations.
New Zealand cooperation in maritime exercise was suspended because of the dispute between the US and its' about banning on nuclear armed weapon and ships. But I wonder why US RIMPAC allowed China to join in this drill ins pite of the dispute and tension including of it's violation case to the UN Tribunal filled by the Philippines? I can't understand why US would like to teach a Communist country in enhancing its naval defences and strategies which can be used against its potential enemy like the Philippines, Japan, and South Korea which are all her allies?
Participation of China in this maritime exercise will not only gain experience, skills and knowledge but also an opportunity for China's navy to demonstrate its increased capabilities and to get a closer look at other navies since there one of they're forte is spying. We hope that in the future Mr. President Obama and participants in this important event will never regret the moment that a communist armed forces participated in this affair.
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