£3bn warship is a symbol of strength in choppy times
IT’S good news to hear that the maiden voyage of our brand-new aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth may well take her to the Far East. Not only will she help reassure our Asian allies that the West is willing and capable of standing up to Chinese bullying – but she’s a good advert for British trade too.
HMS Queen Elizabeth will no doubt take part in joint naval exercises with Japan and the US, putting out a clear message that regional aggression from China is not acceptable. The South China Sea is an international seaway and must be free and accessible to everyone.
But she also helps in other ways that tend to go under the title of “soft power”. Next year, post-Brexit, the UK will be seeking to strengthen its commercial ties with old Commonwealth friends.
Showing a willingness to step up our commitment to peace in the Pacific will be appreciated by important allies, especially by Australia, which has gone out on a limb to challenge China’s tyrannical communist leaders over their poor handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Australia and New Zealand – both members of our Five Eyes intelligence alliance – have also resisted the Chinese telecom giant Huawei’s involvement in their telecoms.
Our nearby presence will reassure them we are all on the same side against China’s bad behaviour and at the same time, signifies our continued support of beleaguered Hong Kong.
ATRADE deal is in the offing with Japan and a joint exercise with that island nation could do no harm in reinforcing our mutual interests.
Moreover, sailing one of our top naval assets halfway around the world demonstrates that we are far more dedicated to enforcing global peace than our EU neighbours who are reluctant even to spend enough on defending themselves. For when it comes to projecting our power and international influence, we still perform above our weight. Ranked eighth in the world, our army and navy may be smaller than other nations, but they are better trained and pack a bigger technological punch.
HMS Queen Elizabeth carries two squadrons of F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jets and will be accompanied by two Type 45 destroyers, two Type 23 frigates, tankers and helicopters. With an annual defence budget of almost £50billion, we spend the second most of all our Nato comrades and that makes us the most dependable ally of the biggest spender, the US, still the most powerful nation in the world. Plus, we have 200 nuclear warheads deployable anywhere around the globe. In an age of missiles and drones, aircraft carriers may seem like relics of a bygone age. But they remain powerful symbols of political and economic dominance. Our two aircraft carriers, costing £3billion each, put us on the same level as the fleets of China and South Korea. Of course, the US Navy has 20, but many of them are far older than the newly built HMS Queen Elizabeth and the soon-to-be launched HMS Prince of Wales.
Packed with the latest weaponry, these vessels are a brilliant showcase of our technical skills. If we can build something as sophisticated as an aircraft carrier, the world will understand that our top engineers can match anyone in the world for constructing cutting-edge prestige projects. There’s another factor. When the Royal Navy sails into foreign ports, it provides a great opportunity to entertain local politicians and business people.The fleet’s viceadmiral is an ambassador for all our interests – and that should include pushing the best that Britain has to offer.
The vessel is the perfect mobile stage for trade shows.
Despite what Left-wing critics might say, our British Armed Forces and our imperial history are something to be proud of and still regarded with some respect around the world.
HMS Queen Elizabeth is the very physical embodiment of all that and we should be unashamed in making the most of her presence in overseas waters.
She has cost us a lot of taxpayers’ money. But as an investment, her purpose was never just one of national defence but a symbol of our continued relevance and vigour in the 21st century.
When she sails into a foreign port, she will express the fact that post-Brexit Britain is a worldwide player which will forge ahead at full steam in the competitive waters of the next few decades.We may no longer rule the waves, but HMS Queen Elizabeth can help us make a pretty good show of our enduring global ambitions.
‘Our Armed Forces are still regarded with respect worldwide’