“The expectation is to see one, if not two ships, on a year-round basis doing a variety of things with a variety of partners in the region,” Commander Blair Saltel, the captain of Calgary, said in Yokosuka, Japan.
US, China set for high-level talks to avert South China Sea clashes
His ship, docked at the naval base near Tokyo along with Canadian navy supply ship the Asterix, left Canada in July on a mission that has taken it through the East China Sea, to Australia and into the contested South China Sea, where it encountered Chinese warships.
The Canadian naval ensign flies from the bow of HMCS Calgary at the US naval base in Yokosuka, Japan. Photo: Reuters
Last week, it joined Japanese and US warships, including the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier, for anti-submarine warfare exercises in the western Pacific that were part of the biggest combat readiness exercise yet staged in and around Japan.
“There’s an opportunity for Canada to demonstrate that we have experience working with allies within coalitions,” Saltel said.