For the second straight year, Japan will send a warship - a large helicopter carrier to the South China Sea and Indian Ocean as it looks to bolster its presence in the strategic maritime region.

"This is part Japan's efforts to promote a free and open Indo-Pacific," said officials who have direct knowledge of the plan for a two-month tour beginning in September. This news was first reported by Reuters.

The 248 metre-long JS Kaga, which can operate several helicopters simultaneously, will make stops in India, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, said the sources who asked not to be identified because they are not authorized to speak to the media. The Kaga, which will be accompanied by an escort ship, may also conduct ad hoc joint drills with warships from other counties in the region, they said.

The Izumo-class helicopter carrier JS Kaga will traverse across the South China Sea and Indian Ocean for a two-month patrol starting September.

Japan had sent the JS Izumo in 2017 during its months-long deployment to Southeast Asia as it took part in the 2017 session of the Malabar naval exercise in the Bay of Bengal, which involved naval forces of India, Japan, and the United States.

Japan’s Ministry of Defence has so far not publicly confirmed the deployment of the JS Kaga to the South China Sea or the Indian Ocean.

An author in The Diplomat notes that the Kaga is one of the biggest surface warships operated by Japanese naval forces since the end of World War II. While the JMSDF officially classified the warships’ as helicopter destroyers in order to downplay the carrier class’ offensive capabilities, the flattops have reportedly been designed to operate short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) fighters such as Lockheed Martin’s F-35B.

The Japanese Naval Force primarily sees the Izumo-class as an anti-submarine warfare platform as the carrier is fitted with a powerful wOQQ-22 bow-mounted sonar and can accommodate a large number of Japan’s most advanced sub-hunting helicopters.

Japan's growing visibility in these strategic water ways reflects the concern it shares with the United States over China's military presence in a region through which trade routes pass that are vital to the Japanese and U.S. economies.

China, which says its intentions are peaceful, claims most of the South China Sea and has built bases on reefs and shoals it has reclaimed. China has also increased naval operations in the Indian Ocean.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 06, 2018 02:12 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).