Manila, May 21 (IANS): Seven US warships arrived in the Philippines for a routine visit, officials said on Saturday.
The group consists of USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) with Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 21, guided-missile destoyers USS Stockdale (DDG 106), USS Chung-hoon (DDG 93), and USS william P. Lawrence (DDG 110), and guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53), Xinhua news agency reported.
The USS John C. Stennis Strike Group (JCSSG) warships, which are manned by about 8,500 sailors, arrived on Friday in Subic Bay, Zambales, the officials said.
It is not the first time that the JCSSG visited the Philippines as it participated in the US-Philippine Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) exercise last April.
In pursuing its pivot-to-Asia policy, the US has reportedly deployed some 60 percent of its navy assets in the South China Sea.