Breaking News: UK Aircraft Carrier Strike Group Marks Historic First Visit to Japan with HMS Prince of Wales.

The UK Carrier Strike Group, spearheaded by the British Royal Navy’s flagship and largest warship, HMS Prince of Wales aircraft carrier, has arrived in Japan for the first time, marking a significant milestone in the United Kingdom’s expanding presence in the Indo-Pacific region. This visit to Tokyo on August 28, 2025, represents the symbolic halfway point in the group’s ambitious eight-month deployment under Operation Highmast, a mission designed to demonstrate British global reach and reaffirm strategic commitments to regional allies.
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British Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales and the UK Carrier Strike Group arrive in Tokyo, Japan, on August 28, 2025, as part of Op HIGHMAST. (Picture source: British MoD)

Operation Highmast is the British Royal Navy’s most extensive maritime deployment since the Cold War, involving a powerful naval formation led by HMS Prince of Wales and supported by a multinational fleet from a dozen allied nations. Launched in April 2025, the operation spans key strategic waterways from the Mediterranean to Southeast Asia, with objectives centered on strengthening international partnerships, enhancing interoperability with allied forces, ensuring freedom of navigation in contested regions, and showcasing British defense technology and industrial capability. The mission includes high-intensity joint exercises, port visits, and defense diplomacy activities aimed at reinforcing the UK's role as a forward-leaning global security actor.

The British Navy strike group’s presence in Japan signals the increasing importance London places on security partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, as regional tensions continue to escalate. Prior to reaching Japan, the Carrier Strike Group conducted high-profile operations and port visits across the Mediterranean, Middle East, and Indian Ocean, including strategic stops in Singapore and Australia. Now entering the Asian leg of its journey, the focus turns to joint exercises and regional engagement aimed at reinforcing regional stability.

Over the duration of this deployment, more than 4,500 British military personnel are committed to the operation, including 2,500 Royal Navy sailors and Royal Marines, nearly 600 personnel from the Royal Air Force, and 900 soldiers. This integrated presence reflects a whole-of-force approach, combining naval air power, ground-based capabilities, and logistical coordination. HMS Prince of Wales is operating as a floating command center and aviation hub, carrying advanced F-35B Lightning II fighter jets and support aircraft to bolster interoperability with allied forces across the region.

The Tokyo port call marks more than a diplomatic courtesy—it is a deliberate strategic gesture highlighting the UK’s long-term vision for defense cooperation in Asia. British officials have underscored that the visit is not just about showcasing naval prowess, but also strengthening industrial ties, facilitating defense exports, and demonstrating the UK’s status as a reliable security partner in one of the world’s most contested geopolitical theaters.

In recent years, UK-Japan defense relations have grown increasingly close, particularly in the naval domain. Both countries are island nations with global maritime interests and have aligned strategically through the signing of key defense agreements such as the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), which entered into force in 2024. This groundbreaking pact allows both forces to deploy and operate in each other’s territories with greater ease and coordination. Naval cooperation has also deepened through joint exercises such as Pacific Crown and trilateral operations involving the United States, enhancing tactical interoperability and reinforcing shared maritime doctrines.

Beyond exercises, the UK and Japan are now co-leading the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a sixth-generation fighter development project that underscores their commitment to long-term defense industrial collaboration. In the maritime domain, Japan has shown growing interest in adopting British naval technologies and standards, including support and integration of carrier operations with the Royal Navy. The recent deployment of British F-35B jets on Japan’s JS Kaga during joint drills in the Philippine Sea marks a historic milestone in cross-deck aviation capabilities between the two nations.

As British Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales docks in Tokyo, it symbolizes a maturing naval alliance between the UK and Japan—one rooted in shared democratic values, mutual strategic interests, and a common vision for stability and freedom in the Indo-Pacific maritime domain.