US warship USS Freedom arrives in Singapore

The United States’ first littoral warship, USS Freedom, has arrived in Singapore as part of Washington’s plan to expand the US military presence in Southeast Asia.

According to US Navy officials, the USS Freedom arrived in Singapore’s Changi Naval Base around 11:00 a.m. local time (0300 GMT) on Thursday.

The ship is set to be stationed in the region for at least 10 months.

This comes after the US announced in April 2012 that it would deploy four littoral warships to Singapore for joint military exercises, a move aimed to expand bilateral military cooperation with the Asian country.

The announcement was made by US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta following a meeting with Singaporean Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen in the same month at the Pentagon.

Panetta added that the combat ships would be deployed on a rotating basis rather than being based in Singapore.

Since 1990, Singapore has consistently supported a strong US military presence in the Asia-Pacific region. In 2005, the two countries expanded defense and security cooperation by signing a Strategic Framework Agreement.

The United States has deployed the USS Freedom amid tensions on the Korean Peninsula.