HMS Prince of Wales resumes core CSG25 duties in Singapore after South China Sea transit

The UK's flagship has returned to core duties after arriving once again in Singapore, having crossed the South China Sea, as part of the Carrier Strike Group 25's eight-month mission.

HMS Prince of Wales previously made a port call in the Garden City in June, and this latest visit comes as the task force continues its Indo-Pacific deployment.

Watchkeeping, weapons training, damage control and rapid-response drills are now underway as the carrier resumes its core routines.

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Before arriving in Singapore, the Carrier Strike Group bid farewell to USS Higgins, a US Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, which sailed alongside HMS Richmond through the Taiwan Strait.

Chinese authorities said that the presence of the two ships undermined peace and stability in the region.

According to a statement from the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) Eastern Theatre Command, the crossing of the 110-mile strait between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland caused "trouble-making and provocation".

The South China Sea is one of the world's most contested waterways, with China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan all laying overlapping claims to its islands and surrounding waters.

Ships from Japan, Canada, Australia and South Korea have all joined the deployment in recent weeks, demonstrating what the MOD called "combined strength and readiness".

Known as Operation Highmast, the deployment has involved 10 allies training together, covering 30,000 miles across the Mediterranean region, the Middle East and the Indian Ocean.

The operation will last eight months, having begun in April 2025 when the Carrier Strike Group sailed from Portsmouth.

It is due to conclude in December, with the sailors expected home for Christmas.

For more reports about Carrier Strike Group 25, click here.