US deploys intermediate-range missile launcher to the Philippines for the first time, triggering China’s pushback – CNN.co.jp

(CNN) By the 25th, the U.S. Army announced that it had sent a ground-based medium-range missile launcher (MRC) to the Philippines to take advantage of joint military exercises with the country.

This is the first time the launcher, also known as Typhon, has been deployed in the Indo-Pacific region. It is capable of launching missiles with a range of up to 1,600 km. According to military experts, China’s strongholds in the South China Sea, where territorial disputes are lingering, as well as the southern regions of mainland China and areas along the Taiwan Strait, are within range.

The dispute over the sovereignty of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea has recently intensified between the Philippines and China, with China taking coercive actions such as showering Philippine supply ships with water cannons.

China has opposed the deployment of the MRC to the Philippines, and criticized the United States for inciting a military confrontation. In a regular briefing, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson urged the United States to seriously consider the security concerns of other countries.

The US Army explained that the MRC deployment was in conjunction with joint military exercises with the Philippines that began on the 11th of this month. It did not mention the duration of the deployment. The United States and the Philippines are planning a series of joint military exercises, the first of which began on the 8th of this month. On the 22nd, the largest regular exercise to date, “Balikatan”, began.

The MRC can carry the SM6 ballistic missile interceptor and the Tomahawk cruise missile. According to the Missile Defense Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), the SM6 can target ships within a range of 370 kilometers. The Tomahawk has a range of 1,600 km.

Military experts described the deployment of Typhon as the first demonstration of the United States’ intention to rectify the regional situation in which China has long held an advantage in missile power.

A medium-range missile launcher (MRC) being unloaded from a U.S. Air Force C17 transport aircraft.

Koh, a researcher at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University’s Rajaratnam Institute of International Studies (RSIS), said that China’s missile forces have posed a threat to the U.S. military in the “first island chain,” which includes the northern Philippines, Japan and Taiwan. It also positioned it as a way to “balance” the situation. The government is also looking to improve the air defense capabilities of the “second island chain,” which extends eastward to the U.S. territory of Guam. These two archipelago lines are China’s own military defense line.

In a 2021 report, the U.S. Army’s military magazine Military Review explained that the Chinese military’s rocket force has the largest ground-based missile force in the world. The number of conventional ballistic missiles and cruise missiles exceeds 2,200. It also said it has a sufficient number of anti-ship missiles and has attack capabilities capable of neutralizing the missile defense capabilities of all U.S. surface combatants in the South China Sea.

Although deploying the MRC will not immediately erode China’s numerical superiority, the MRC, with its mobile capabilities, will pose problems for Chinese operational planners. In this respect, it could serve as an important deterrent.

Military experts believe that the US military’s MRC deployment in the Philippines is not a permanent measure. Coe argued that having the ability to immediately deploy Typhon to previously investigated launch sites in places like the Philippines would strengthen the chances of surviving a crisis. It was also interpreted as a test for China’s relatively new and unproven missile strategy, including intelligence gathering, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting capabilities.