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Asian gazing (part III): pivot to pirouette and prioritised posture
Posted By Graeme Dobell on June 4, 2013 @ 06:30
The United States is doing a pirouette on its pivot. Or, to use preferred Pentagon prose on the pivot, the US is offering more detail about how it is shifting the pieces of military kit involved in the rebalance to Asia. The rule of 60% going to Asia is to be applied beyond the Navy to the Air Force and to US capabilities in the cyber and space domains.
By 2020 the Navy will reposture its forces from today’s roughly 50/50 split between the Pacific and the Atlantic to about a 60/40 split between those oceans. That will include six aircraft carriers in this region, a majority of our cruisers, destroyers, Littoral Combat Ships, and submarines.
The United States will continue to implement the rebalance and prioritize our posture, activities and investments in Asia-Pacific. We are already taking many tangible actions in support of that commitment. For example, the US is adding to the capacity of our ground forces in the Pacific after Iraq and as we unwind from Afghanistan. The 1st and 3rd Marine Expeditionary Forces and the Army’s 25th Infantry Division are all returning to their home stations in the Pacific theatre. The US Army is also designating 1st Corps as 'regionally aligned' to the Asia-Pacific region. In addition to our decision to forward base 60% of our naval assets in the Pacific by 2020, the US Air Force has allocated 60% of its overseas-based forces to the Asia-Pacific – including tactical aircraft and bomber forces from the continental United States. The Air Force is focusing a similar percentage of its space and cyber capabilities on this region. These assets enable us to capitalize on the Air Force’s inherent speed, range, and flexibility. The United States military is not only shifting more of its assets to the Pacific—we are using these assets in new ways, in new ways to enhance our posture and partnerships.
It will of course be important in the longer term, but the rebalance should mainly be seen as a signal that the US will remain engaged in Asia Pacific security, reflecting not just US economic ties to the region but also the emergence of China as a regional competitor in both economic and military terms.
The rebalance could also be seen as a way for Washington to rebuild capabilities, denuded since 9/11, with the operational demands of Iraq and Afghanistan. Asian states were, meanwhile, trying to discern what was new in the US rebalance. Indeed, it is much a signal to allies (and potential rivals) that the US will be increasingly engaged in regional security.
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[1] Image: http://www.aspistrategist.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/turning_an_aircraft_carrier_03.jpg
[2] Defence Secretary Leon Panetta announced: http://www.defense.gov/speeches/speech.aspx?speechid=1681
[3] picked up from that point and widened its application: http://www.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=120186
[4] 2013 Military Balance: http://www.iiss.org/en/publications/military%20balance/issues/the-military-balance-2013-2003