US aircraft carrier strike group arrives in the East Sea
Jul 18, 2025
Washington [US], July 18: The US Navy's Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group entered the South China Sea on July 16, according to USNI News.
USNI News reported on the evening of July 17, citing AIS ship tracking data, that the US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, along with Carrier Air Wing 2, cruiser USS Princeton and destroyer USS Sterett passed through the Strait of Malacca on July 16 (local time), along with the oil tanker USNS Guadalupe. Data showed that the Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group and the USNS Guadalupe then moved through the Singapore Strait, entering the South China Sea.
The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) destroyer JS Asahi was also seen near the US aircraft carrier strike group in the Strait of Malacca.
It is not yet clear whether the JS Asahi, which is returning to Japan after a deployment to the Middle East, will join the US carrier strike group in the South China Sea.
The ship movement took place at the same time that the Joint Staff Office of the Japanese Ministry of Defense suspected that the Chinese flights were trying to gather information about Taiwan 's annual Han Kuang exercise , according to USNI News . Taiwan's Defense Ministry announced on July 17 that within 24 hours, 58 Chinese military aircraft, nine naval vessels, and one coast guard ship had been operating around Taiwan. There is currently no information about China's reaction.
It is not clear how long the USS Carl Vinson will be in the South China Sea or whether it will make any port visits. The USS Carl Vinson is expected to return to Naval Base San Diego in California.
The USS Carl Vinson departed on November 18, 2024, for a scheduled deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. As of July 17 (US time), the USS Carl Vinson has been deployed for 241 days. The carrier strike group recently departed the Middle East after three months of operations in the US Central Command's area of responsibility.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
