The allied navies of the Philippines, United States and Japan staged joint maneuvers in the South China Sea, two days after Chinese coast guard and navy ships allegedly harassed Filipinos near the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
The so-called multilateral maritime cooperative activity (MMCA) took place Friday within the 200 nautical-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Philippines, said Col. Xerxes Trinidad, chief spokesman for the Philippine military.
“It aims to reinforce interoperability among the participating nations in a manner consistent with international law and with due regard for the safety of navigation, and the rights and interests of other states,” Trinidad said in a statement.
A P-8A Poseidon aircraft from the U.S. Navy and a Philippine Navy C-90 aircraft flew overhead as the JS Samidare, a destroyer from the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, sailed with the Philippine ship BRP Andres Bonifacio, the statement said.
The maneuvers marked the fifth MMCA conducted between the Philippines and “like-minded countries” in the West Philippine Sea since last year, Trinidad said, using Manila’s name for South China Sea waters within its EEZ.
Previous joint maneuvers in the waterway had included ships and aircraft from the Philippines, the United States, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand.
Statements issued Friday by both the Philippine and U.S. military did not make clear whether the MMCA was a joint patrol.
In November 2023, the U.S. and Philippines launched joint air and sea patrols in the South China Sea, amid a series of tense incidents between Philippine and Chinese vessels in contested waters.
This past April, Japan joined the U.S. and the Philippines in launching trilateral patrols in the waterway.
The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said Friday’s activity demonstrated the three countries’ “collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
“This builds upon previous MCAs and our continuing operations together, which strengthen the interoperability of our defense/armed forces doctrines, tactics, techniques, and procedures. MCAs are conducted in a manner that is consistent with international law and with due regard to the safety of navigation and the rights and interests of other States,” the Hawaii-based command said in a statement.
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Meanwhile on Friday, an American warship sailed near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, the U.S. Navy said.
The sail-through by the USS Preble, a destroyer, challenged restrictions on “innocent passage” claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, which have competing claims to the Spratlys, the U.S. military branch said in a statement. The Philippines and Malaysia claim some portions of the islands, while Brunei claims an EEZ over the area.
“The United States challenges excessive maritime claims around the world regardless of the identity of the claimant,” the statement said. “The United States upholds freedom of navigation for all nations as a principle.”
On Wednesday, authorities in Manila accused vessels from the China Coast Guard and People’s Liberation Army Navy of harassing Philippine Coast Guard and Bureau of Aquatic Resources (BFAR) boats in Scarborough Shoal and Sabina Shoal.
One of the BFAR vessels, the BRP Datu Romapenet, was “significantly” damaged after it was allegedly rammed by the Chinese in Sabina Shoal, officials in Manila said.
In Scarborough Shoal, BFAR vessel BRP Datu Pagbuaya was fired upon with a water cannon, they added.
On Friday, the Chinese Embassy in Manila insisted that Huangyan Dao, its name for the Scarborough Shoal, “has always been Chinese territory.”
Beijing accused Manila of ignoring repeated Chinese warnings to the Philippine side not to intrude in the area.
“China took necessary actions in response to protect our territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests in accordance with the law,” the embassy said in a statement in Manila, saying the measures it took were “justified, lawful, professional and restrained.”
China’s objective in the incident earlier this week was to establish maritime control over the entire South China Sea, according to Rommel Judge Ong, a retired Philippine Navy rear admiral and security analyst.
“Any de-escalation of tension before and in the future does not sidetrack from their objective,” he said, referring to an earlier agreement between Manila and Beijing to lower the tension in Second Thomas Shoal, another regional flashpoint.
In 1999, Manila deliberately grounded BRP Sierra Madre, a rusting World War II-era navy ship, on that reef to mark its territorial claim and serve as a military outpost.
Philippine authorities had accused Chinese vessels of blocking resupply missions to the Sierra Madre.
In June, a Filipino serviceman was wounded in a violent encounter with Chinese coast guard personnel during a standoff near the ship.
Jeoffrey Maitem in Manila contributed to this report. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news outlet.