Starmer Sees Off UK Carrier Group for Eight-Month Pacific Tour
HMS Prince of Wales sails from Portsmouth Naval Base on April 22.
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Keir Starmer saw off one of Britain’s largest naval deployments this century, as the UK looks to enhance security in the Indo-Pacific and re-build its reputation as a significant maritime power.
The UK prime minister joined armed forces aboard the HMS Prince of Wales on Wednesday night, a day after it set sail from Portsmouth on an eight-month tour through 30 countries across the Mediterranean, Middle East, Southeast Asia, Japan and Australia. The ship, one of two British aircraft carriers commissioned in recent years to carry advanced F-35 fighter jets, is being accompanied by at least six other British, Norwegian and Canadian vessels.