US Stealth Jet Carrier Patrols South Pacific Amid China Rivalry
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A United States naval task group, led by a warship capable of carrying stealth fighter jets, operated in the South Pacific Ocean amid China's growing naval presence in the region.
The USS America, an amphibious assault ship equipped with F-35B fighter jets, visited Sydney, Australia, alongside two other vessels, demonstrating the U.S. Navy's forward presence, the U.S. Navy said.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese defense and foreign ministries via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Australia is a U.S. ally in the South Pacific, where American naval vessels frequently make port calls for stopovers and training. These include visits by the nuclear-powered submarine USS Minnesota to Western Australia in February and the Northern Territory in March.
Meanwhile, China is expanding its military reach and presence in the Pacific, leveraging the world's largest navy by hull count. From mid-February to early March, three Chinese naval vessels conducted a high-profile circumnavigation of Australia in a show of naval strength.
What To Know
The America arrived in Sydney on Saturday, followed by the amphibious transport dock ship USS San Diego and the amphibious dock landing ship USS Rushmore the next day. The ships conducted a scheduled visit as part of routine operations in the South Pacific, the U.S. Navy said.
The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS America arrives in Sydney, Australia, for a scheduled port visit on June 14, 2025.
The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS America arrives in Sydney, Australia, for a scheduled port visit on June 14, 2025.
U.S. Embassy Australia
This marks the first time the three amphibious warships, capable of projecting air and land power from sea to shore, have been moored simultaneously in Sydney on the Australian east coast, along with about 4,500 Navy sailors and Marines, according to the U.S. Navy.
This group of naval ships and its embarked 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit—a U.S. Marine Corps crisis response force—forms the America Amphibious Ready Group, which is capable of conducting combat operations as well as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
The F-35B fighter jet, designed for short takeoff and vertical landing on ships without full-length runways, offers "unparalleled stealth and operational flexibility," the U.S. Navy said.
Prior to their port calls, the U.S. amphibious warships conducted "integrated operations" in the Solomon Sea, located north of Australia, between Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands on June 9, demonstrating the joint combat power of the Navy and Marine Corps.
In addition to the America Amphibious Ready Group, USS Blue Ridge—a U.S. command and control ship—visited Sydney on May 26 during its deployment in the South Pacific. It was last seen on Saturday in Guam, the westernmost U.S. territory located in the Pacific.
The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS America conducts flight operations in the Solomon Sea with an F-35B fighter aircraft on June 9, 2025.
The U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship USS America conducts flight operations in the Solomon Sea with an F-35B fighter aircraft on June 9, 2025.
Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Darian Lord/U.S. Navy
What People Are Saying
U.S. Navy Captain John Baggett, commodore of the Amphibious Squadron 11 that oversees the America Amphibious Ready Group, in a press release on Sunday: "Our port visit allows us to deepen friendships with our Australian allies, which is instrumental to our two nations' forces operating together to maintain regional peace and stability."
Erika Olson, Chargé d'Affaires, U.S. Mission to Australia, in a press release on Saturday: "The U.S.-Australia alliance is a cornerstone of peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific. The arrival of America, USS San Diego and USS Rushmore marks the first time that the three-ship America Strike Group are together in Sydney."
What Happens Next
The America will shift its home port from Sasebo, Japan, to San Diego, California, and will be replaced by its sister ship, USS Tripoli, as part of a scheduled rotation of U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific region. It remains to be seen when the ship will depart for the U.S. West Coast.
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Los Angeles Times
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an hour ago
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When pressed on why ICE is arresting immigrants who have not been convicted or are not facing pending criminal charges, Trump administration officials tend to argue that many of those people have violated immigration law. 'ICE agents are going to arrest people for being in the country illegally,' Homan told CBS News earlier this month. 'We still focus on public safety threats and national security threats, but if we find an illegal alien in the process of doing that, they're going to be arrested too.' Immigration experts say that undermines their message that they are ridding communities of people who threaten public safety. 'It's a big backtracking from 'These people are out killing people, raping people, harming them in demonstrable ways,' to 'This person broke immigration law in this way or that way,'' Bier said. The Trump administration is also trying to find new ways to target criminals in California. It has threatened to withhold federal funds to California due to its 'sanctuary state' law, which limits county jails from coordinating with ICE except in cases involving immigrants convicted of a serious crime or felonies such as murder, rape, robbery or arson. Last week, the U.S. Justice Department requested California counties, including L.A., provide data on all jail inmates who are not U.S. citizens in an effort to help federal immigration agents prioritize those who have committed crimes. 'Although every illegal alien by definition violates federal law,' the U.S. Justice Department said in a news release, 'those who go on to commit crimes after doing so show that they pose a heightened risk to our Nation's safety and security.' As Americans are bombarded with dueling narratives of good vs. bad immigrants, Kocher believes the question we have to grapple with is not 'What does the data say?' Instead, we should ask: 'How do we meaningfully distinguish between immigrants with serious criminal convictions and immigrants who are peacefully living their lives?' 'I don't think it's reasonable, or helpful, to represent everyone as criminals - or everyone as saints,' Kocher said. 'Probably the fundamental question, which is also a question that plagues our criminal justice system, is whether our legal system is capable of distinguishing between people who are genuine public safety threats and people who are simply caught up in the bureaucracy.' The data, Kocher said, show that ICE is currently unable or unwilling to make that distinction. 'If we don't like the way that the system is working, we might want to rethink whether we want a system where people who are simply living in the country following laws, working in their economy, should actually have a pathway to stay,' Kocher said. 'And the only way to do that is actually to change the laws.' In the rush to blast out mugshots of some of the most criminal L.A. immigrants, the Trump administration left out a key part of the story. According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, its staff notified ICE on May 5 of Veneracion's pending release after he had served nearly 30 years in prison for the crimes of assault with intent to commit rape and sexual penetration with a foreign object with force. But ICE failed to pick up Veneracion and canceled its hold on him May 19, a day before he was released on parole. A few weeks later, as ICE amped up its raids, federal agents arrested Veneracion on June 7 at the ICE office in L.A. The very next day, DHS shared his mugshot in a news release titled 'President Trump is Stepping Up Where Democrats Won't.' The same document celebrated the capture of Phan, who served nearly 25 years in prison after he was convicted of second-degree murder. CDCR said the Board of Parole Hearings coordinated with ICE after Phan was granted parole in 2022. Phan was released that year to ICE custody. But those details did not stop Trump officials from taking credit for his arrest and blaming California leaders for letting Phan loose. 'It is sickening that Governor Newsom and Mayor Bass continue to protect violent criminal illegal aliens at the expense of the safety of American citizens and communities,' DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
