US military's logistics drill aims to burnish East Asia crisis response

Drills in East Asia this summer by the US military body charged with moving munitions and equipment will help it better co-ordinate and communicate with allies in response to a crisis, its commander said on Friday.

Alarmed by growing Chinese assertiveness, whether in the disputed South China Sea or around Chinese-claimed Taiwan, Washington and its friends in the region have been drilling together regularly.

The US Transportation Command (Transcom) is responsible not only for co-ordinating the pre-positioning of weapons and other equipment around the world by land, air and sea but also for resupply in the event of conflict.

On a visit to East Asia, Transcom Commander Randall Reed told reporters it was essential to maintain and expand ties in the region to ensure a swift US response to disasters and counter threats to peace and security.

“We're going to have a series of exercises and will test the logistics architecture and infrastructure which provides sustained freedom of manoeuvre,” he said on a teleconference, without giving details of location or timing.

“We're seeking to demonstrate our ability to rapidly mobilise, then deploy forces from within the US to locations throughout the region here,” Reed added, describing the aim of one exercise, Mobility Guardian.

The tasks will permit testing of tactics, techniques and procedures with allies and partners and enhance connectivity, he said.

“It will help us deepen relationships and work together more closely than we already are to bolster regional security.”

On his trip, Reed has visited Japan and the Philippines and will go to South Korea, all treaty allies of the US.

The militaries of the Philippines and the US have sailed together in the South China Sea for a seventh time to boost interoperability between the two sides, Manila's armed forces said on Thursday.

Reuters