The Hawaiian Marines were the first to receive a “ship-destroying” rocket launcher

Marines on Oahu are the first in their service to officially receive a new “ship-destroying” missile system that they hope will give American forces an advantage in the Pacific.

They have tested the Navy/Marine Corps Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System, better known as NMESIS, and are eager to add it to their arsenal. Members of the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment held a ceremony at Dewey Square on Naval Base Hawaii in November to celebrate receiving the rocket launchers.

Lt. Col. Timothy Love, commanding officer of the regiment’s 3rd Littoral Combat Team, told attendees that after receiving the NMESIS weapons system, the regiment “has an enhanced sea denial capability and is at the forefront of strategic transformation.”

The Marine Corps is in the midst of an ambitious restructuring, transforming itself from previous decades of fighting land battles in the Middle East against insurgents to its roots as a naval combat force focused on island and coastal operations. The Marines are calling the initiative Force Design 2030.

The 3rd Marine Coastal Regiment is the first unit to be reorganized and is intended to serve as a blueprint for what the rest of the corps will look like. Love said the arrival of NMESIS “deepens naval integration and strengthens deterrence by providing cover from coastal positions and expanding joint forces’ ability to target and attack from both land and sea.”

The vehicle-mounted NMESIS launchers are designed to quickly move to different positions to deploy missile launch batteries. A regimental spokesman told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser that while the new launch system is now on the island, the actual missiles are not here yet.

Elements of the 3rd Marine Coastal Regiment are training for deployment to the Western Pacific in 2025. When asked if they would bring NMESIS, the spokesman said: “Unfortunately, planning for the deployment is still underway and it is too early.” to know whether the NMESIS is deployed with the unit.”

Missiles are an important part of Marine Corps leaders’ vision for Force Design 2030.

The architects of Force Design 2030 envision groups of Marines spreading out and establishing positions along island chains and atolls, using missiles, drones and other high-tech tools to fire at enemy ships and provide critical strategic island support – and coastal positions to hold Navy and American allies.

The Marines tested NMESIS prototypes at the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai in the summer of 2021, firing two of the missiles at a decommissioned Navy frigate 60 miles offshore while practicing quickly moving into position to deploy the missiles and to fire at passing enemy ships before they could be spotted.

“The transition of NMESIS from the initial test and operational evaluation category to a field weapons system is a significant milestone for the 3rd MLR,” the regiment’s commander, Col. John Lehane, said in a statement. “The NMESIS provides this regiment with a strong sea denial capability in support of our mission essential task of attacking enemy maritime targets.”

Force Design 2030 was designed to reflect how Marine Corps leaders view a potential conflict in the Pacific, with a particular focus on the disputed South China Sea – a vital waterway through which at least a third of all international trade passes.

Neighboring island chains would also play a role if China were to invade Taiwan, a self-governing island democracy that Beijing views as a rogue province.

Beijing considers the entire waterway its exclusive territory, despite objections from its neighbors. The Chinese military has deployed troops on disputed reefs and built more than two dozen artificial islands – some with airstrips – to consolidate its position.

The Marines’ new strategy appears to be tailored in part to the fight for these disputed islands and reefs.

But Force Design 2030 was controversial. The 3rd Marine Coastal Regiment eliminated all of its conventional cannon-based artillery pieces in favor of using NMESIS. The Marine Corps has also phased out its entire tank inventory.

Critics have charged that focusing on missiles and drones would put the Marine Corps’ infantry in the role of primarily protecting those assets rather than engaging the enemy, gradually eroding the Marine Corps’ famous culture of aggression. Former Marine officers have expressed concerns that the new posture will ultimately put troops in exposed positions where hundreds – if not thousands – of young Marines could be killed if the tactic were used in a real conflict.

But the new vision also has ardent supporters. In January, a group of current and former Marine Corps officers wrote an article at War on the Rocks – an influential website focused on national security issues – highlighting recent events in Ukraine and the Red Sea, in which combatants have used missiles and drones, sometimes with devastating effects against their opponents.

The naval officers wrote that “the comprehensive lessons learned from the Black Sea and the Middle East are directly applicable to the Indo-Pacific.”

But while U.S. policymakers have said they want to be able to fight and win a Pacific conflict, they also insist they hope that by demonstrating their capabilities and strengthening alliances they will ultimately win any war can prevent.

Over the past year, U.S. and Chinese diplomats have worked to ease tensions. US military leaders also sought talks with their Chinese counterparts.

In September, General Wu Yanan, the Chinese military commander in charge of operations in the South China Sea, attended a meeting of senior military leaders in Hawaii and met with Admiral Samuel Paparo, commander of all US forces in the Pacific. U.S. officials called it a positive sign, nearly two years after Beijing cut off most dialogues between U.S. and Chinese military commanders.

But shortly after the visit, the Chinese military tested a ballistic missile that landed in the Pacific Ocean south of Hawaii, between Kiribati and French Polynesia. Chinese officials sent a notification to U.S. and French officials before the launch but did not inform the leaders of the Pacific island nations. While US officials said the notifications were a positive step, officials in Kiribati condemned the Chinese launch.

The November election that returned former President Donald Trump to power has raised questions about the future of American foreign policy. Known for his tough stance on China, Trump tapped Rep. Michael Waltz, R-Florida, a retired Green Beret who built a reputation as a vocal China hawk, as White House national security adviser.

As part of the transition, Waltz has held discussions with President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan.

“Jake Sullivan and I have had conversations; “We met,” Waltz told Fox News on November 24th. “To our opponents out there who think this is a time of opportunity, that they can pit one government against another – they are wrong.”…We are hand in hand. We are a team with the United States in this transition.”