The Pentagon is concerned over the declining American power at sea. The Department of Defense (DoD) has been going through war games to shake the military power of China, preventing any disastrous upsets.
“The most destabilizing event in the 21st century is going to be when China can achieve conventional parity at a time and place of its choosing,” said Maj. Gen. Tracy King of the Marine Corps’ Director of Expeditionary Warfare, according to Breaking D. “These war games are reinforcing that fact. So when they are able to do that, and when they can decide whether or not we’re going or fight or not, that’s going to be extremely destabilizing.”
To delay the upset that China can deal with, both the Navy and Pentagon are devising a new force structure plan that is to develop and procure diverse and asymmetrical unmanned ships, small ships, and standoff weapons to hold Chinese vessels at bay.
One concern is the A2/AD defenses that China has installed on its coast and the South China Sea, which is not something to discount. Several ideas are centered on the race between China and the United States, who gets to trump the other one.
King said in the war game, the Chinese have this Assassins Mace, which are aggregate weapon systems made to counter America. Adding that the joint force is not made to counterpunch it. Though, the Chinese have loopholes in their plan.
One of the sore points in A2/AD is the lack of mobility, expensive, too much maintenance, and worse, it is only effective in the area of responsibility.
For the Marines and Navy, this is where they will spread out in unconventional ways to penetrate China's defense. The protective bubble has a gap, and that is where the U.S. Forces will get into negating it. Another observation is that if a conflict does happen, there will a good 30 to 45 days of groping. After that stage, forces will employ the devised strategy.
There's an interest in long-range missiles for the marines to place on mobile shore batteries. Next, will be attacking and harassing enemy vessels and keeping carrier strike groups unmolested. Marines will be emphasizing on a mobile force that can give opposing forces something to look out for.
Marine Commandant David Berger has been lobbying for changes to get things moving. The approval of Defense Secretary Mark Esper has a go, and the Berger plan will be implemented in spring, noted Wall Street Journal.
Shifting to a leaner, faster, and precise forces that will be different from the current deployment of forces and equipment seen in today's military. Going for faster mobile forces will be the wave of the future.
King added that marines will be the spearhead and sinking ships in the frontlines. Another idea is stationing some marines to sinking subs as well, not just torpedoes. The logic is keeping the enemy distracted by a seen threat, but underneath is marines in a sub who are ready to sink vessels.
These plans for a smaller and light force is contrary to plans in acquiring more aircraft carriers and bigger ships which for Berger are large and vulnerable to attack, like how marines play to take out enemy assets.
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