UK to Expand Pacific Naval Presence to Counter Beijing

The United Kingdom will expand its naval presence in the Indo-Pacific in an effort to counter China’s growing influence, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced in Samoa on Saturday at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) meeting. The move, which supports U.S.-led effort, will include more Royal Navy operations and joint fishing patrols with Pacific island countries to counter illegal fishing, for which China is the world’s biggest perpetrator. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the challenges faced by our friends and partners on the other side of the world,” Starmer said in a statement....