Reuters :
Britain’s new aircraft carrier the HMS Queen Elizabeth made a stop in Singapore on Monday, part of a move to reassert itself globally and boost its military presence in Asia amid rising competition among major powers.
The Queen Elizabeth led a British carrier strike group in exercises with Singapore’s military at the weekend, including naval manoeuvres and simulated combat training with F-35B stealth fighters and F-16 jets.
Britain plans to permanently deploy two warships in Asian waters, where the United States and Western allies are trying to contain China’s militarisation and island-building in seas vital to the movement of trillions of dollars of global trade.
“What better way to just show that off in the first instance, with Queen Elizabeth deploying here for her first operational deployment.”
