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<ul class="summary-list"><li>On November 14, 1970, the US Navy commissioned <keyword id="2935436" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="USS-Blue-Ridge">USS Blue Ridge</keyword> into service.</li><li>50 years later, the Blue Ridge is still in service and is still one of the Navy's most advanced ships.</li></ul><p>On November 14, USS Blue Ridge celebrated its 50th year in service, further solidifying its status as the Navy's oldest operational ship.</p><p>Commissioned on November 14, 1970, Blue Ridge is the lead ship of its class and is the flagship of the US 7th Fleet, based in Yokosuka, Japan.</p><p>Blue Ridge is one of two amphibious command ships in the US Navy. The other, USS Mount Whitney, is Blue Ridge's sister ship and the flagship of the 6th Fleet in Europe.</p><p>While Blue Ridge is a half-century old, it is still one of the Navy's most technologically advanced ships.</p><h2>A new type of command ship</h2><div type="image" title="Navy USS Blue Ridge" height="1004" width="1339" msid="79291936" hostid="261"></div><p>Blue Ridge-class amphibious command ships arrived at an important time during the Cold War.</p><p>With the Vietnam War raging and war with the Soviet Union still a possibility, the Navy wanted a new class of command-and-control vessels that could coordinate all aspects of amphibious operations on a large scale. The vessels also needed to be fast enough to keep up with the rest of the fleet — a distinct problem with previous command ships.</p><p>The hulls were based on Iwo Jima-class amphibious assault ships, and development and construction took almost seven years. Three were originally planned, but only two were completed.</p><p>The ships were massive — over 600 feet long with a displacement of up to 19,000 tons. They were originally armed with two twin Mark 33 guns and two Mark 25 missile launchers, but that was replaced by two Phalanx CIWS systems and several 25 mm Bushmaster cannons in the 1990s.</p><p>Blue Ridge-class vessels' true armament is their electronics and communications equipment. At the time of their commissioning, they carried some of the most sophisticated technology in the world. Their large, flat decks were designed to minimize interference with their numerous wires, antennas, and communication towers.</p><h2>A rich history</h2><div type="image" title="USS Blue Ridge" height="1767" width="2500" msid="79291938" hostid="261"></div><p>After its commissioning at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Blue Ridge spent its first year in the waters of North and South America, before being sent to the Western Pacific in 1972.</p><p>When North Vietnam launched its Easter Offensive in early 1972, Blue Ridge was preparing for the Golden Dragon exercise. The drill was canceled, and Blue Ridge spent four months supporting operations in the Gulf of Tonkin.</p><p>While there, Blue Ridge was the command ship for the 9th Marine Amphibious Brigade and helped support the last amphibious operations of the war during the Second Battle of Quảng Trị. The crew even fired their guns at targets ashore.</p><p>Blue Ridge spent 64 days at sea during the Easter Offensive, a record that held until 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-uss-blue-ridge-record-time-underway-amid-coronavirus-2020-5" target="_top">kept the ship from making the frequent port calls</a> for which it's known.</p><p>Blue Ridge continued supporting operations in Vietnam and participated in training exercises in South Korea and Japan.</p><div type="image" title="USS Blue Ridge helicopter Vietnam evacuation" height="1825" width="2500" msid="79291943" hostid="261"></div><p>In 1975, during its third deployment, it played a key role in organizing the evacuation of Saigon during <a href="https://www.navalaviationmuseum.org/history-up-close/frequent-wind-delivered-thousands-to-freedom/" target="_top">Operation Frequent Wind</a>. Blue Ridge coordinated Task Force 76, a force of over 26 ships that evacuated almost 6,000 South Vietnamese refugees and US personnel with 80 helicopters.</p><p>Blue Ridge's communications equipment proved vital to the evacuations. "The air flow went perfectly. It was absolutely remarkable," one of the Marines who planned the airlift said of Blue Ridge's involvement.</p><p>Blue Ridge also took on refugees. Six South Vietnamese helicopters ditched alongside it after unloading their passengers, one crash-landed on the flight deck, and another plowed into the starboard side but only caused cosmetic damage.</p><p>It became the flagship of the 7th Fleet in 1979 and was forward deployed to Yokosuka Naval Base, its homeport ever since.</p><p>Between 1979 and 1984, Blue Ridge rescued 91 Vietnamese boat people, plucking them from the South China Sea. For nine and a half months between 1991 and 1992, it was the flagship for the commander of US Navy forces in the Middle East during Operation Desert Storm.</p><h2>'No better ship'</h2><div type="image" title="USS Blue Ridge Mt Fuji Japan" height="1680" width="2500" msid="79291945" hostid="261"></div><p>Blue Ridge has received numerous upgrades over the years, ensuring its suite of electronics and communications equipment is still some of the most advanced on any ship.</p><p>In addition to supporting Navy operations and training, Blue Ridge has also done good-will trips and humanitarian operations, including Operation Tomodachi, a US assistance operation for Japan after the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.</p><p>In 2018, Blue Ridge <a href="https://defpost.com/u-s-7th-fleet-flagship-uss-blue-ridge-completes-dry-dock-maintenance/" target="_top">completed</a> a 19-month maintenance overhaul. It's now expected to serve until 2039.</p><p>"There is no better ship to support us as our flagship." Vice Adm. Bill Merz, commander of the 7th Fleet <a href="https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/Press-Releases/display-pressreleases/Article/2415296/uss-blue-ridge-50-years-of-committed-service/" target="_top">said</a> on the ship's birthday. "Year after year, she has enabled operations of the largest forward fleet, while at the same time participating in enduring joint service and multi-national exercises and supporting disaster relief operations."</p>

The Navy's oldest operational ship just turned 50. Here's why it's still on the frontline of crises and conflict

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="2935436" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="USS-Blue-Ridge">USS Blue Ridge</keyword>, the flagship of the Navy's <keyword id="824715" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="7th-Fleet">7th Fleet</keyword>, has been at sea for 65 straight days, breaking the ship's Vietnam War-era for underway operations.</li><li>The Blue Ridge is known for frequent port visits, but the ship's 2020 patrol schedule changed after the coronavirus outbreak earlier this year.</li></ul><p>The crew of the US 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) and embarked 7th Fleet staff hit a 48-year historic landmark by surpassing the ship's underway record, marking 65 days of continuous underway operations, May 17.</p><p>Blue Ridge's previous record of 64 days was set during the Vietnam War when she left port April 5, 1972 and stayed at sea in and around the Gulf of Tonkin until June 2, 1972, when she moored in the Philippines.</p><p>The 2020 Blue Ridge patrol changed with the outbreak of COVID-19. The ship and crew have spent 65 consecutive days underway and counting, an unusual length of time for a ship well-known for its frequent port visits.</p><p><div type="image" title="Navy USS Blue Ridge" height="1693" width="2500" msid="75855808" hostid="261"></div></p><p>"This is an amazing accomplishment for the Blue Ridge, especially being the Navy's oldest operational warship and approaching her 50th year of service," said Blue Ridge commanding officer Capt. Craig C. Sicola from Dallas. "As I told the crew, the record is only a number, but their hard work and resiliency has been truly impressive and that's what really matters. These times are uniquely challenging for the entire world, but it takes an extremely dedicated crew to maintain this old of a ship at sea for this long."</p><p>While not a normal Blue Ridge patrol, the ship and her crew have remained at sea conducting operations during this challenging pandemic, including supporting 7th command and control of the fleet and supporting partners and allies across the region, as opposed to a physical visit.</p><p>"From the beginning of this pandemic and our extended underway period, our focus has been on how to adapt to this new enemy and maintain our ability to stay in the fight," said Sicola. "It is that mental focus that has kept our sailors engaged, even with great personal sacrifice and stress. Blue Ridge and 7th Fleet staff have bonded together to ensure the fleet remains operationally ready."</p><p>To stay operationally ready Blue Ridge's crew has utilized the extended time at sea to maintain training, operational standards and capability and even hit some major milestones for the crew throughout the patrol.</p><p><div type="image" title="Navy USS Blue Ridge" height="968" width="1854" msid="75855812" hostid="261"></div></p><p>Blue Ridge's damage control training team coordinator, Damage Controlman 1st Class Bryan McCullough, from Rancho Cucamonga, California, said his team has taken advantage of the extra time "by making routine drills like fire, flooding and structural damage more advanced which has made the crew's response times faster."</p><p>"Never knowing what might happen, is what makes these drills so important," said McCullough. "Keeping the ship afloat is always our number one priority so being able to keep Blue Ridge capable of conducting her mission regardless of what that mission may be, is why we conduct these drills over and over."</p><p>"The crew has been amazing," said Sicola. "I realize every day how tough it has been, especially for some who have lost loved ones, or who have families that have endured challenging events during this pandemic. Even through all that, their heads are high and they have taken great pride in Blue Ridge's historic underway during her 50th year of service."</p><p>Blue Ridge is the oldest operational ship in the Navy, and as 7th Fleet command ship, works to foster relationships among allies and partners within the Indo-Pacific region.</p><p>As the US Navy's largest forward-deployed fleet, 7th Fleet has approximately 50-70 ships and submarines and 140 aircraft with approximately 20,000 Sailors in the AOR at any given time.</p>Read the original article on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-uss-blue-ridge-record-time-underway-amid-coronavirus-2020-5">Business Insider</a>

The Navy's oldest operational ship has set a record for time underway as the coronavirus keeps it at sea

<p class="source"><span>Photo by Anthony Kwan/Getty Images</span></p><p class="caption">US Navy crew members stand on deck of the USS Blue Ridge during a port call on April 20, 2019 in Hong Kong, China.</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>China retaliated against US legislation supporting human rights in Hong Kong on Monday by suspending US Navy port visits to the city.</li><li>The move was a largely symbolic gesture, one with more diplomatic ramifications than military, US officials told Insider.</li><li>Pacific Fleet informed Insider that China has actually been rejecting port call requests for months now, with 7 denials in the past six months.</li><li><strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</strong></li></ul><p>China retaliated against the US Monday by suspending US Navy port visits to Hong Kong - but China has actually been rejecting port call requests from the US for months now, US Pacific Fleet told Insider.</p><p>In response to Congress passing and President Donald Trump signing a bill <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-signs-hong-kong-human-rights-bill-2019-11">supporting human rights in Hong Kong</a>, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Monday that China has decided to suspend the process of reviewing requests for US military vessels and aircraft to visit Hong Kong.</p><p>US officials told Insider that the move has more diplomatic than operational significance. "If we can't make port there, we'll make it somewhere else," one official said.</p><p>"We are aware the People's Republic of China has suspended US Navy port visits to Hong Kong," Cdr. J. Myers Vasquez, a Pacific Fleet spokesman, told Insider Monday evening in an emailed statement. He added that the US Navy hopes that it will be able to "conduct future port visits to Hong Kong."</p><p>China's decision to suspend US Navy port calls to Hong Kong over what Beijing characterized as "unreasonable" and "serious interference in China's internal affairs" appears to be a largely symbolic gesture of China's dissatisfaction with US behavior rather than a meaningful punishment.</p><p>China has been rejecting US Navy port calls left and right over the past few months.</p><p>China has, according to Pacific Fleet, rejected seven US Navy port visit requests in the past six months. The USS Green Bay and USS McCampbell were scheduled to make port in August, the USS Lake Erie in September, the USS Patriot and USS Warrior in October, the USS Milius in November, and the USS Gabrielle Giffords in December. The last US Navy port call to Hong Kong was made by the USS Blue Ridge, the 7th Fleet command ship, in April.</p><p>The city of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/hong-kong-protesters-prepared-to-die-democracy-experts-sucide-trends-2019-8">Hong Kong has been in turmoil</a> for the better part of the year as pro-democracy protests rage across the city.</p><p>After President Donald Trump signed into law the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act last week, Beijing warned that it would "take strong counter-measures in response to the US behavior that interferes in China's internal affairs and undermines China's interests."</p><p>In addition to suspending port visits to Hong Kong, China has also decided to sanction various non-governmental organizations the country's government has accused of fueling the unrest in the Chinese city.</p>            <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-marines-are-trained-to-fight-bayonets-boot-camp-combat-2019-11">How Marine recruits are trained to fight with bayonets at boot camp</a></h3>

China actually started blocking US Navy port calls to Hong Kong months before its latest retaliatory move

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The Navy reported three coronavirus cases aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, currently deployed in the Pacific, on Tuesday.</li><li>These cases mark the first cases aboard a deployed US warship, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly said at the Pentagon.</li><li>The sailors who have tested positive, as well as individuals they had contact with, have been quarantined.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p>Sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt have tested positive for the coronavirus, the Navy said Tuesday, revealing that this is a first for a deployed warship.</p><p>"Three cases of COVID-19 have been identified among personnel currently deployed and underway on the USS Theodore Roosevelt," Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly revealed Tuesday. "These our are first three cases of COVID-19 on a ship that is deployed."</p><p>There are roughly 5,000 sailors aboard the Nimitz-class carrier, Fox News, <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/us-navy-sailors-theodore-roosevelt-test-positive-coronavirus">which first reported the cases</a>, noted, all of whom live in tight conditions in staterooms and berthing spaces.</p><p>The sailors who have tested positive for the virus have been quarantined and are being flown off the ship. Everyone that the three infected sailors had contact with are also being quarantined as well. "This is an example of our ability to keep our ships deployed at sea even with active COVID-19 cases," Modly said, adding that the integrated naval force remains on watch.</p><p>"Our ships are sailing, our planes are flying, and training is still happening to safeguard our US national interests and those of all of our allies and partners around the world," the acting secretary said.</p><p>This marks the first time the coronavirus has been detected aboard a deployed warship, the Navy has already reported a number of cases among sailors assigned to pierside ships. As of Sunday, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-spread-more-us-navy-sailors-ships-in-san-diego-2020-3">there had been at least a dozen cases among sailors aboard warships at port in San Diego</a>.</p><p>US 7th Fleet said Saturday that members of Navy Forward-Deployed Preventive Medicine Units (FDPMU) and Naval Medical Research Center (NMRC) <a href="https://www.c7f.navy.mil/Media/News/Display/Article/2120795/navy-preventive-medicine-teams-embark-ships-in-7th-fleet/">embarked aboard several ships in the Pacific</a>.</p><p>Testing for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, is being conducted aboard the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6), the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), and the 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19).</p><p>Get the latest <a href="/coronavirus-covid19">coronavirus analysis and research</a> from Business Insider Intelligence on how COVID-19 is impacting businesses.</p>

There has been a coronavirus outbreak aboard a deployed US Navy aircraft carrier

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul><li><strong>The US Department of <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">Defense</keyword> released footage showing the USS Blue Ridge command ship leaving dry dock in Yokosuka, Japan.</strong></li><li><strong>Dry dock is an area where water can be drained so as to allow maintenance, construction, and cleaning of a ship or other water vessel.</strong></li><li><strong>It takes the USS Blue Ridge two days to get out of dry dock.</strong></li></ul><p><br>The&#xa0;<span>USS Blue Ridge is the lead ship of her class and the oldest&#xa0;deployable warship in the US Navy.&#xa0;</span></br></p><p><span>Assigned to the United States Seventh Fleet based in&#xa0;Yokosuka, Japan, the Blue Ridge&#xa0;is one of the US Navy's two command ships.</span></p><p><span>When the US Navy's ships are in port and undergoing maintenance, they are put in dry dock - a narrow basin that a ship can sail into and then have all of the water in it drained. This enables workers to access the ships underside, and enable stability during construction and upgrading operations.</span></p><p><span>Footage released by the Department of Defense shows that it takes the USS Blue Ridge two days to get out of dry dock.</span></p><p>See the time-lapse video here:</p><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-sit-ups-crunches-bad-planks-good-2017-8">An exercise scientist explains why you shouldn't do sit-ups or crunches</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div></hr>

It takes 2 days for the US Navy to get its oldest deployable warship out to sea - watch how it happens

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Russia-Military-Show/cf54031c87394f83a79d18ca354e33dc/27/0">Pavel Golovkin/AP Images</a></span></p><p class="caption">Russian heavy flamethrower system TOS-1 fires during the International Military Technical Forum Army-2018 in Alabino, outside Moscow, Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2018. Russia has displayed its latest weapons at a military show aimed at attracting more foreign customers.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>French President Emmanuel Macron criticized the US and urged Europe to forge its own path forward in its collective <keyword id="6354810" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="defense">defense</keyword> against Russia, according to reports.</p><p>In a speech to French ambassadors, he warned that increased nationalism is driving the US to abandon its European allies.</p><p>"The partner with whom Europe built the new post-World War order appears to be turning its back on this shared history," he said.</p><p>His remarks stand at odds against recent US military efforts to counter increased Russian activity. Sparked by Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis' newest <a href="https://dod.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2018-National-Defense-Strategy-Summary.pdf" title="2018 National Defense Strategy Summary">National Defense Strategy</a>, military officials are reinforcing their forces in Europe and the Atlantic. </p><p>Mattis' new strategy maintains that "inter-state strategic competition, not terrorism, is now the primary concern in U.S. national security."</p><p>To comply with this shift, the <a href="http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=106837" title="Navy Establishes 2nd Fleet">US Navy in August relaunched</a> its Second Fleet, a Cold War-era force known for its history of countering Soviet threats in the Atlantic. Its revitalization, coupled with an increased presence of US ships in the Black Sea, are the Navy's direct responses to what officials are labeling as <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-reactivating-2nd-fleet-for-atlantic-amid-tensions-with-russia-2018-5">resurgent Russian activity</a> in the region. At the fleet's reactivation ceremony, the Navy's top official, Adm. John Richardson, noted the threat of a resurgency in Russia. </p><p>"The nation, and the Navy, are responding," he said. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/image/4558323/180713-n-xt273-1237">U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Justin Stumberg</a></span></p><p class="caption">BLACK SEA (July 13, 2018) The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) and the Blue Ridge-class command and control ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) sail in formation in the Black Sea during exercise Sea Breeze 2018, July 13. Sea Breeze is a U.S. and Ukraine co-hosted multinational maritime exercise held in the Black Sea and is designed to enhance interoperability of participating nations and strengthen Maritime security within the region.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>The Defense Department recently committed almost <a href="https://www.defensenews.com/air/2018/08/27/in-its-bid-to-counter-russia-us-air-force-to-spend-40m-on-romanian-air-base/?utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=ebb%2027.08.18&amp;utm_term=Editorial%20-%20Early%20Bird%20Brief" title="Bid to Counter Russia">$40 million in funds </a>to an air base in Romania, according to Defense News. Although the US does not maintain its own base in the country, the Romanian forces at Camp Turzii have often hosted US forces for exercises and training. According to the report, these funds are "specifically designated to deter Russian aggression."</p><p>Despite these efforts, Macron remains skeptical that the US will defend its European allies. According to a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-france-diplomacy/macron-says-brexit-cannot-divide-eu-criticises-trumps-isolationism-idUSKCN1LC0ZY" title="Macron urges independent EU">Reuters report</a>, he prodded the EU to discard its reliance on the US, urging financial and strategic autonomy. </p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/americans-want-tiny-small-japanese-sports-kei-car-autozam-az1-2018-7">Why Americans want this tiny Japanese sports car</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The US military is upping the pressure on Russia, but its oldest ally thinks the US is turning its back on Europe

<p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/us-pacific-command/6848687801/sizes/l/in/photostream/">Kenneth Abbate via U.S. Navy</a></span></p><p class="caption">The USS John C. Stennis.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span><span>The US Navy has deployed a small armada to the disputed islands in the South China Sea, <span>according to </span><a href="http://www.navytimes.com/story/military/2016/03/03/stennis-strike-group-deployed-to-south-china-sea/81270736/" target="_blank">The Navy Times</a><span>.</span></span></p><p><span>America's USS John C. Stennis<span> aircraft carrier</span>, destroyers Chung-Hoon and Stockdale, cruisers Antietam and Mobile Bay, and Japan's <span>Blue Ridge were </span></span><span><span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/china-has-deployed-8-surface-to-air-missiles-on-a-contested-island-in-the-south-china-sea-2016-2" target="_blank">deployed</a> after China installed <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/missiles-china-placing-in-south-china-sea-2016-2" target="_blank">HQ-9 surface-to-air missiles</a> on Woody Island,<span> </span><span>one of the most central </span><span>swathes of land in the disputed waters.</span></span></span></p><p><span>"China is clearly militarizing the South China Sea, and you'd have to believe in the flat Earth to think otherwise," Cmdr. Harry Harris, of the US Pacific Command, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/china-is-clearly-militarizing-the-south-china-sea-and-youd-have-to-believe-in-the-flat-earth-to-think-otherwise-2016-2" target="_blank">recently warned</a> Congress.</span></p><p><span><span><span>"Our ships and aircraft operate routinely throughout the Western Pacific - including the South China Sea - and have for decades," Navy Cmdr. Clay Doss said in <a href="http://www.defenseone.com/news/2016/03/the-d-brief-march-04-2016/126425/" target="_blank">a statement</a>.  </span></span></span><span><span><span>"In 2015 alone, Pacific Fleet ships sailed about 700 combined days in the South China Sea."</span></span></span></p><p><span><span><span>But a carrier strike group's presence in the disputed waters speaks for itself.</span></span></span></p><p><span><span><span>"Clearly the Navy and DoD is demonstrating its full commitment to presence and freedom of navigation in the region," said Jerry Hendrix, a retired Navy captain and analyst with the Center for a New American Security in Washington, DC, told The Navy Times</span></span></span><span><span><span>. "</span></span></span><span><span><span>With the full carrier strike group and the command ship, the Navy is showing the scope of its interests and ability to project presence and power around the world."</span></span></span></p><p><span><span><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/Ritchie B. Tongo</span></p><p class="caption">A Filipino soldier patrols an island shore in the South China Sea.</p></div><p></p></div></div></span></span></span></p><p>Additionally, US Secretary of <keyword id="6354810" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Defense">Defense</keyword> Ash Carter said on Tuesday that the US is willing to <a href="http://www.military.com/daily-news/2016/03/04/us-navy-reportedly-deploys-several-more-ships-to-south-china-sea.html?ESRC=topstories.RSS" target="_blank">spend $425 million</a> on joint military exercises with nations in the Pacific that feel threatened by China's militarization of the major trade route.</p><p><span><span>Of course, China denied militarizing the region and went as far as to blame the US instead, warning that the US was committing a "<a href="http://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy-defence/article/1920523/us-blame-escalating-tension-south-china-sea-china" target="_blank">miscalculation of the situation</a>."</span></span></p><p><span><span>"If you take a look at the matter closely, it's the US sending the most advanced aircraft and military vessels to the South China Sea," Fu Ying, the spokeswoman for the Chinese legislature, said. </span></span></p><p><span><span>She continued:</span></span></p><p style="padding-left: 30px;"><span><span>The US has made it clear that it will deploy 70 per cent of its navy to the Asia-Pacific region under its strategy of pivoting to Asia. The US has stepped up military moves with its alliances and its military presence in the Asia-Pacific region. Isn't this militarization?</span></span></p><p><span><span><span>China has created islands with military-grade runways and missile-defense hardware on islands claimed by Japan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei.</span></span></span></p><p><span><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table click-to-enlarge"><div><div class="image"><a title_source="Reuters" title_caption="" class="zoomin" href="https://static-ssl.businessinsider.com/image/56c630fa2e5265b6008b8153-960/south china seas.jpg"><span class="sprites click-to-enlarge-icon" title="Click to enlarge"></span></a><p class="source"><span>Reuters</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></span></span></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/biggest-risks-2016-eurasia-group-saudi-arabi-isis-china-us-europe-2016-1">These are the biggest risks facing the world in 2016</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="1yZmd4eTokdaUX-SbXaNg-rdWXygmYaa" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

US: Yes, China, we did send a small armada to the South China Sea

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source">AP/Heng Sinith</p><p class="caption">In this photo taken Dec. 3, 2010, U.S. <keyword id="42407" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="Navy">navy</keyword> officer Michael "Vannak Khem" Misiewicz smiles as he delivers his welcome speech on the deck of the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Mustin at Cambodian coastal international see port of Sihanoukville, about 220 kilometers (137 miles) southwest of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. </p></div><p></p></div></div><em>Navy bristling from case alleging contractor bought secrets with hookers, Lady Gaga tickets</em></p>
<p>SAN DIEGO (AP) - Nicknamed "Fat Leonard," the gregarious Malaysian businessman is well known by U.S. Navy commanders in the Pacific, where his company has serviced warships for 25 years.</p>
<p>But prosecutors in court papers say Leonard Francis worked his connections to obtain military secrets by lining up hookers, Lady Gaga tickets and other bribes for a U.S. commander, in a scandal reverberating across the Navy.</p>
<p>The accusations unfolding in a federal court case in San Diego signal serious national security breaches and corruption, setting off high-level meetings at the Pentagon with the threat that more people, including those of higher ranks, could be swept up as the investigation continues. A hearing Nov. 8 could set a trial date.</p>
<p>Navy commander Michael Vannak Khem Misiewicz passed confidential information on ship routes to Francis' Singapore-based company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia Ltd., or GDMA, according to the court documents.</p>
<p>Misiewicz and Francis moved Navy vessels like chess pieces, diverting aircraft carriers, destroyers and other ships to Asian ports with lax oversight where Francis could inflate costs, according to the criminal complaint. The firm overcharged the Navy millions for fuel, food and other services it provided, and invented tariffs by using phony port authorities, the prosecution alleges.</p>
<p>"It's pretty big when you have one person who can dictate where ships are going to go and being influenced by a contractor," said retired Rear Adm. Terry McKnight, who has no direct knowledge of the investigation. "A lot of people are saying how could this happen?"</p>
<p>So far, authorities have arrested Misiewicz; Francis; his company's general manager of global government contracts, Alex Wisidagama; and a senior Navy investigator, John Beliveau II. Beliveau is accused of keeping Francis abreast of the probe and advising him on how to respond in exchange for such things as luxury trips and prostitution services. All have pleaded not guilty. Defense attorneys declined to comment.</p>
<p>Senior Navy officials said they believe that more people would likely be implicated in the scheme, but it's too early to tell how many or how high this will go in the naval ranks. Other unnamed Navy personnel are mentioned in court documents as getting gifts from Francis.</p>
<p>Francis is legendary in military circles in that part of the world, said McKnight, who does not know him personally. He is known for extravagance. His 70,000-foot bungalow in an upscale Singapore neighborhood drew spectators yearly since 2007 to its lavish, outdoor Christmas decorations, which The Straits Times described as rivaling the island city-state's main shopping street with replicas of snowmen, lighted towering trees, and Chinese and Japanese ornaments.</p>
<p>"He's a larger-than-life figure," McKnight said. "You talk to any captain on any ship that has sailed in the Pacific and they will know exactly who he is."</p>
<p>Navy spokesman, Rear Adm. John Kirby said Navy Criminal Investigative Service agents initiated their probe in 2010, but declined to comment further, citing the ongoing investigation.</p>
<p>That same year, Misiewicz caught the world's attention when he made an emotional return as a U.S. Naval commander to his native Cambodia, where he had been rescued as a child from the violence of the Khmer Rouge and adopted by an American woman. His homecoming was widely covered by international media.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Francis was recruiting him for his scheme, according to court documents.</p>
<p>Misiewicz's family went to a Lion King production in Tokyo with a company employee and was offered prostitution services. Within months, the Navy commander was providing Francis ship movement schedules for the USS George Washington Carrier Strike Group and other ships, according to the criminal complaint.</p>
<p>Shortly after that, the manager wrote to Francis: "We got him!!:)," according to court documents.</p>
<p>Misiewicz would refer to Francis as "Big Brother" or "Big Bro" in emails from a personal account, while Francis would call him "Little Brother" or "Little Bro," according to the complaint.</p>
<p>The company bilked the Navy out of $10 million in just one year in Thailand alone, U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy said.</p>
<p>In December 2011, the two exchanged emails about the schedule of the USS Blue Ridge, investigators say. According to court documents, Francis wrote Misiewicz: "Bro, Slide a Bali visit in after Jakarta, and Dili Timor after Bali."</p>
<p>The complaint alleges Misiewicz followed through on the demands: In October 2012, the USS George Washington was scheduled to visit Singapore and instead was redirected by the Navy to Port Klang, Malaysia, one of Francis' preferred ports where his company submitted fake contractor bids.</p>
<p>After Francis offered Misiewicz five tickets to a Lady Gaga concert in Thailand in 2012, Francis wrote: "Don't chicken out bro we need u with us on the front lines," according to court documents.</p>
<p>The federal government has suspended its contracts with Francis.</p>
<p>The defendants face up to five years in prison if convicted of conspiracy to commit bribery.</p>
<p>_____</p>
<p>Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor in Washington and Satish Cheney in Singapore contributed to this report.</p>
<div>
<p>Copyright (2013) Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.</p>
</div>
<p></p>

FEDS: Navy Commander Sold Secrets To Malaysian Businessman For Hookers, Gaga Tickets

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image"><p class="source"><span>REUTERS/U.S. Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eric A. Pastor/Handout</span></p><p class="caption">Crew members on board a U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon man their workstations while assisting in search operations for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 over the Indian Ocean, in this handout photo taken March 16, 2014. </p></div><p></p></div>KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Investigators probing the disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines jetliner with 239 people on board believe it most likely flew into the southern Indian Ocean, a source close to the investigation said on Wednesday.</p>
<p>No wreckage has been found from Flight MH370, which vanished from air traffic control screens off Malaysia's east coast at 1:21 a.m. local time on March 8 (1721 GMT March 7), less than an hour after taking off from Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing.</p>
<p>An unprecedented search for the Boeing 777-200ER is under way involving 26 nations in two vast search "corridors": one arcing north overland from Laos towards the Caspian Sea, the other curving south across theIndian Ocean from west of Indonesia's Sumatra island to west of Australia.</p>
<p>"The working assumption is that it went south, and furthermore that it went to the southern end of that corridor," said the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity.</p>
<p>The view is based on the lack of any evidence from countries along the northern corridor that the plane entered their airspace, and the failure to find any trace of wreckage in searches in the upper part of the southern corridor.</p>
<p>China, which is leading the northern corridor search with Kazakhstan, said it had not yet found any sign of the aircraft crossing into its territory.</p>
<p>Malaysian and U.S. officials believe the aircraft was deliberately diverted perhaps thousands of miles off course, but an exhaustive background search of the passengers and crew aboard has not yielded anything that might explain why.</p>
<h3>SOPHISTICATED EQUIPMENT</h3>
<p>The minister in charge of the operation said the multinational search team was deploying the most sophisticated equipment available to find the plane.</p>
<p>"It probably is the largest peacetime armada of assets and satellite information-sharing that we have ever seen for a rescue and search operation," Malaysia's Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said.</p>
<p>Officials believe that someone with detailed knowledge of both the Boeing 777 and commercial aviation navigation switched off two vital datalinks: the ACARS system, which relays maintenance data back to the ground, and the transponder, which enables the plane to be seen by civilian radar.</p>
<p>The source close to the investigation said that it was thought "highly probable that ACARS was switched off prior to the final verbal message" received for the cockpit.</p>
<p>That message, an informal "all right, good night" radioed to Malaysian air traffic controllers to acknowledge their handover of the plane to Vietnamese airspace, was believed to have been spoken by the co-pilot, the airline said earlier this week.</p>
<p>Investigators piecing together patchy data from military radar and satellites believe that minutes later the plane turned sharply west, re-crossing the Malay Peninsula and following an established commercial route towardsIndia.</p>
<p>After that, ephemeral pings picked up by one commercial satellite suggest the aircraft flew on for at least six hours. The data from the satellite placed the plane somewhere in one of the two corridors when the final signal was sent at 8:11 a.m.</p>
<p>The methodical shutdown of the communications systems, together with the fact that the plane appeared to be following a planned course after turning back, have been interpreted as suggesting strongly that foul play, rather than some kind of technical failure, was behind the disappearance.</p>
<p>NEVER FOUND?</p>
<p>Last week, a source familiar with official U.S. assessments said it was thought most likely the plane flew south, where it presumably would have run out of fuel and crashed into the sea.</p>
<p>If it did indeed end up in the southern Indian Ocean, one of the remotest places on Earth and also one of the deepest seas, it increases the chance it may never be found - and investigators may never know for sure what happened on board.</p>
<p>U.S. government sources said intelligence agencies had extensively analyzed people on the flight but came up with no connections to terrorism or possible criminal motives.</p>
<p>A senior U.S. official said he was "not aware of any stones left unturned". China has said there is no evidence that Chinese passengers, who made up over two-thirds of those on board, were involved in a hijack or act of sabotage.</p>
<p>Australia is leading the search of the southern part of the southern corridor, with assistance from the U.S. Navy.</p>
<p>It has shrunk its search field based on satellite tracking data and analysis of weather and currents, but it still covers an area of 600,000 sq km (230,000 sq miles), roughly the size of Spain and Portugal.</p>
<p>The U.S. Navy said it had switched mainly to using P-8A Poseidon and P-3 Orion aircraft to search for the missing plane instead of ships and helicopters.</p>
<p>"The maritime patrol aircraft are much more suited for this type of operation," said Navy Lieutenant David Levy, who is on board the USS Blue Ridge. "...It's just a much more efficient way to search."<span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> </span></p>
<p>(Additional reporting by A. Ananthalakshmi, Siva Govindasamy, Michael Martina and Niluksi Koswanage in Kuala Lumpur, Andrea Shalal-Esa and Mark Hosenball in Washington, Jane Wardell in Sydney, Peter Apps in London, Daniel Bosley in Male and Shihar Aneez in Colombo; Writing by Alex Richardson; Editing by Nick Macfie)</p>

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