Ben Morgan’s Pacific Update: Royal Navy busy in the Pacific, more NATO activity in the region

Currently, the Royal Navy is active in the Pacific. On 18 June, HMS Spey transited the Taiwan Strait on a ‘freedom of navigation’ patrol. The vessel’s transit a symbolic gesture designed to reinforce the UK’s opposition to any claim China makes to control this sea lane. An important trade routes that international maritime law defines as ‘high seas,’ and therefore able to be navigated freely at anytime by any vessel.

HMS Spey’s transit is part of a wider trend, NATO countries sending military vessels to exercise their legal right to navigate the Taiwan Strait. In the last year, German, Canadian, US, UK and French warships have transited the strait. This is an example of NATO’s subtle pivot from a strictly European focus to a more worldwide security perspective. This pivot was first stated in the 2023 NATO Strategic Concept and HMS Spey’s activities are another small example of European nations supporting deterrence in the Pacific.

The aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales provides a more significant example; it is currently touring the Indo-Pacific with an escorting task group. HMS Prince of Wales voyage is called ‘Operation Highmast,’ and is a UK led tour of the Indo-Pacific region during which the carrier will operate with a range of allies and partners including Canada, Denmark, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the United States, New Zealand, Australia, India, Japan, and South Korea. In total 13 nations and approximately 4,500 personnel will participate in the operation.

Operation Highmast’s core task group is constituted from NATO nations, and during the tour NATO Indo-Pacific partners will also join the task group. For instance, New Zealand frigate HMNZS Te Kaha joined the task group on 17 June 2025. HMS Prince of Wales commander spoke to the media in Singapore on 27 June and outlined the operation’s objectives “Highmast is about developing in three key areas for us: It’s about developing full operational capability of the U.K. Carrier Strike Group; it’s about partnerships and allies in the Indo-Pacific region, where we are right now; and there’s an element about NATO forces as well, particularly when we are back in the Euro-Atlantic region.”

A statement indicating the activity’s integration with NATO planning, notably the desire to develop greater inter-operability with the alliance’s Indo-Pacific Partners; Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. During the next phase of the carrier’s deployment, it will join the Australian hosted Exercise Talisman Sabre.

Exercise Talisman Sabre 2025 13 July – 4 August

The 11^th Exercise Talisman Sabre is fast approaching, and this year’s will be the largest ever with approx. 30,000 service people from 19 nations participating. Exercise Talisman Sabre is a large biennial exercise, that alternates with Exercise RIMPAC to provide a large annual exercise for US partners in the Pacific. Exercise Talisman Sabre is led jointly by the US and Australia. It tends to be more focussed on ground operations than Exercise RIMPAC but always includes substantial air and naval manoeuvres.

This year the exercise has a heavy focus on integration between Australia, the US, New Zealand and smaller Pacific nations like Fiji and Papua New Guinea. However, it is notable that in recent years more European nations have participated in Exercise Talisman Sabre and this year is no exception with the UK, Norway and the Netherlands participating. NATO Indo-Pacific partners Japan and South Korea are also involved.

Exercises like Talisman Sabre are how international coalitions train, and provide opportunities for alliances to strengthen their relationships including the processes and procedures that contribute to inter-operability. The participation of NATO nations, alongside their partners demonstrates an increasing trend towards the alliance playing a more active role in deterrence in the Pacific.

At the last NATO Summit funding increases were agreed by the members, and this means that we are likely to see this trend accelerate, especially as Russia becomes worn down by the Ukraine War.

China’s new amphibious warfare capability

In China development of more sophisticated amphibious warfare capabilities and equipment continues, including the Shuiqiao Type landing barge. China’s new landing barges are designed to position themselves off-shore on extendable legs, and then extend Bailey style bridges supported by tall towers. A design that enables them to bridge very long spans, up-to approximately 140 metres. The barge’s bridge can be raised using the towers to reach ground higher than the barge so soldiers or vehicles can be landed onto low cliffs.

The barges can be moored together in sequence creating a long bridge that allows large ships to moor in deep water and offload troops and vehicles directly onto the shore. The concept is similar to the Mulberry Harbours used by the Allies during World War Two’s D-Day landings. It worked historically, and early this year the concept was tested in China’s Guangdong region.

The test exercises were interesting because it was supported by civilian vessels. The Guardian reported in March that “Satellite images show the barges were escorted by at least two civilian ships from a nearby civilian dock, and that several other boats – including some marked as fishing vessels on their tracking ID – were sailing laps behind them.” Activity indicating the integration of China’s military and civilian industrial complexes.

China’s new landing barges are impressive examples of amphibious engineering that will increase the Peoples Liberation Army’s ability to get heavy equipment ashore. The long bridges can span all sorts of complex terrain including soft sand on beaches, coastal rocks or man-made defences like minefields and Dragon’s Teeth.

However, the system is unlikely to be used in the first assault waves because its size and immobility make it vulnerable to attack. Instead, it will be used after the first wave of an assault to rapidly bring ashore heavy equipment like tanks, artillery and trucks. China is keen to demonstrate that these vessels have civilian applications, for instance providing humanitarian aid in natural disasters.

However, expert opinion is that the new vessels are better designed for amphibious assaults, Naval News stating that it “… considers such a motivation implausible as principal motivation for such a capability. The bridging-elements as observed distinguish themselves by high mobility, high materiel throughput and flexible application accommodating a range of shore conditions. No requirement in recent history compels relevance of such a bespoke design for purely civilian applications including disaster relief.”

A sentiment shared by Andrew Erikson an academic at the US Navy War College’s China Maritimes Studies Institute assess that the “The Shuiqiaos are not multirole platforms like an aircraft carrier, but rather a dedicated platform for landing high volumes of wheeled and tracked military vehicles on beaches.”

Construction of the Shuiqiao landing barges is another indication of China’s desire to project military power. The barges are a capability with plenty of potential applications across the Pacific region. Analysts highlight Taiwan but there are several other areas that China may wish to rapidly land military forces.

It is also worth considering hybrid scenarios for their use, for instance landing police or militia forces on islands in the South China Sea. Like Russia’s 2014 invasion of Crimea, China could use ‘civilian’ para-military units to support a claim to a disputed area. Or they could be used to rapidly reinforce a partner, for instance a small Pacific nation. The barges allowing heavy equipment to be quickly landed without needing large port facilities.

Melanesian update

A regular update on the Pacific’s least reported trouble spot; Melanesia.

Australia offers Solomon Islands security support for the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting

In September, Solomon Islands will host the 2025 Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting, a large and important event in the South West Pacific. Solomon Islands is a small nation with limited resources and relies heavily of security support from larger nations like Australia. In recent years, Solomon Islands has increasingly looked to China for security support creating tension with Australia.

On 26 June, Australia announced that after a request from Solomon Islands it would provide a large security support package that includes:

• ·Cyber-security support.
• 60 vehicles.
• Upgrading Honiara’s road network.
• AUS$ 3 million for logistics support.

Solomon Islands request indicates that the relationship with Australia is improving and the aid package provides useful support for the event. Soft power that can be leveraged to further strengthen Australia’s relationship with the nation.

Fiji police force to increase by 1000 officers

Fiji is a country on the frontline of the war against Pacific drug trafficking. The country’s location, limited resources, large geographic area and links to profitable drug markets in Australia and New Zealand mean that it is facing an epidemic of drug smuggling.

The Fiji Sun reports that “Finance Minister Biman Prasad announced the major expansion would take the full strength of the Police Force to more than 6,550 across all ranks.” Notably, the Fiji government is also allocating money to improve the wages of senior officers.

Higher wages should improve retention of experienced staff, and reduce corruption and the overall increase in staff should provide more resources to interdict the drug trade, although it will take several years for an impact to show in data.

New Zealand and Australia maintain defence relationships with Fiji and Timor Leste

In the middle of June, the Australian and New Zealand Chiefs of Army visited Fiji and Timor Leste. Reinforcing historic relationships, and looking to maintain them into the future. In Fiji, a nation with close existing defence relationships discussions were likely to be about inter-operability, and how the Fijian Defence Force can operate in Australian led joint operations.

In Timor Leste, the discussion is likely to be more diplomatic than operational. Australia and New Zealand both contributed significantly to the nation’s transition to independence, and will be looking to leverage of this history to create closer defence ties. Timor Leste is currently being ‘courted’ by India, Indonesia and China so Australia is keen to maintain, and increase its diplomatic influence.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ben Morgan is a bored Gen Xer, a former Officer in NZDF and TDBs Military Blogger – his work is on substack