Latest news with #ArmedForcesofthePhilippinesPublicAffairsOffice
The Star
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
China opposes Philippines, US, Australia joint patrol in South China Sea; but Philippines criticise a "high-risk" manoeuvre by Chinese vessel near disputed area
In this photo provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines Public Affairs Office (PAO), Philippine Marines participate in amphibious landing exercise as part of a joint US-Philippines military exercises called Balikatan or "shoulder to shoulder", Sunday May 4, 2025 in Balabac, Palawan province, Philippines. -- Armed Forces of the Philippines PAO via AP BEIJING, May 8 (Reuters): China's foreign ministry on Thursday expressed opposition against a recent joint sea and air patrol by the Philippines, the United States and Australia in the South China Sea. China is committed to safeguarding its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a regular press conference while urging relevant countries to stop forming groups and stirring up trouble in the region. The Philippines, meanwhile, criticised on Thursday a "high-risk" manoeuvre by a Chinese vessel near the disputed Scarborough Shoal in a rare incident involving warships from the two navies. The Scarborough Shoal -- a triangular chain of reefs and rocks in the contested South China Sea -- has been a flashpoint between the countries since China seized it from the Philippines in 2012. Monday's encounter took place "approximately 11.8 nautical miles southeast" of the Scarborough Shoal, the military said, during ongoing US-Philippine military exercises that Beijing has slammed as destabilising. "The Chinese frigate BN 554 was documented tailing PS35 (BRP Emilio Jacinto) at close range, while BN 573 dangerously crossed its bow in a high-risk maneuver that created the danger of collision," the military said in a statement, labelling the incident "threatening and provocative". China in response accused Manila of sending a ship to "intrude" into its territorial waters. Its military said it had sent "naval and air forces to track, monitor, warn and drive away the Philippine boat in accordance with laws and regulations". "The relevant remarks of the Philippines side disregarded the facts, confused the public, and attempted to mislead international cognition," said Colonel Tian Junli, spokesperson of the Chinese military's Southern Theater Command. Philippines Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad told AFP the last such encounter between warships from the two navies he could remember was on a resupply mission in the South China Sea two years ago. Alexander Lopez of Manila's National Maritime Council said the Chinese vessel had been "dangerously close" to its Philippine counterpart. The ship crossing the bow of the BRP Emilio Jacinto had come within about 180 metres (590 feet), he told AFP, leaving "no room for any manoeuvre, for any emergency cases". The Chinese vessel following alongside had been less than 100 metres away, he said. China and the Philippines have engaged in months of confrontations in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims in nearly its entirety despite an international ruling its assertion has no merit. A Filipino sailor lost a thumb last June when Chinese coast guard members wielding knives, sticks and an axe foiled a Philippine Navy attempt to resupply its troops stationed on the Second Thomas Shoal. The joint US-Philippine exercises known as Balikatan, which this year were to simulate a "full-scale battle scenario", are set to end Friday.
Asahi Shimbun
05-05-2025
- General
- Asahi Shimbun
US and Philippine forces cancel ship-sinking drill after World War II-era target prematurely sinks
In this handout photo, provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines Public Affairs Office (PAO), the decommissioned Philippine Navy BRP Miguel Malvar (PS-19) takes on water before sinking while being positioned as vessel target prompting the cancellation of a live-fire drill as part of a joint US-Philippines military exercises called Balikatan or "shoulder to shoulder" approximately 30 nautical miles west of San Antonio, Zambales, Philippines on May 5. (Armed Forces of the Philippines PAO via AP) MANILA, Philippines--A World War II-era Philippine navy ship to be used as a target in a combat exercise by American and the Philippine forces accidentally sank Monday hours before the mock assault, prompting the drill to be cancelled, U.S. and Philippine military officials said. The BRP Miguel Malvar, which was decommissioned by the Philippine navy in 2021, took on water while being towed in rough waters facing the disputed South China Sea and sank about 30 nautical miles (55 kilometers) off the western Philippine province of Zambales. Nobody was onboard when the ship listed then sank, the Philippine military said. American and Philippine forces would proceed with other live-fire maneuvers off Zambales on Monday despite the premature sinking of the Malvar. The ship was built as a patrol vessel for the U.S. Navy in the 1940s and was transferred to Vietnam's navy before the Philippine military acquired it, Philippine navy Capt. John Percie Alcos said. "It's an 80-year-old dilapidated ship and it wasn't able to withstand the rough seas,' Philippine Lt. Col. John Paul Salgado told The Associated Press. The ship-sinking exercise was planned in an offshore area facing the hotly disputed Scarborough Shoal, which has been closely guarded by the Chinese coast guard, navy and suspected militia ships. The Philippines also claims the fishing atoll, which lies about 220 kilometers (137 miles) west of Zambales. Chinese and the Philippine forces have had increasingly hostile confrontations in the waters and airspace of Scarborough in recent years. The cancelled ship-sinking drill would have been the third to be staged by the treaty allies in recent years. It was supposed to be one of the highlights of largescale annual military exercises by the United States and the Philippines from April 21 to May 9 with about 14,000 U.S. and Filipino forces participants. Called Balikatan, Tagalog for shoulder-to-shoulder, the combat drills have increasingly focused on the defense of Philippine sovereignty in the face of China's growing aggression in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims virtually in its entirety. Mock battle scenes which have been staged so far, including the retaking of an island from hostile forces, have reflected assurances by the Trump administration, including by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, that the U.S. would abide by its treaty commitment to defend the Philippines in case Filipino forces come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. On Sunday, U.S., Australian and Philippine forces practiced retaking an island from hostile forces in the coastal town of Balabac in western Palawan province, which faces the South China Sea. Japanese forces and British marines joined as observers of the combat exercise, which 'showcased the growing interoperability and cohesion among partner nations in maintaining regional security,' Salgado said. "What we have seen since Trump returned to the White House is a remarkable level of continuity in the US-Philippines alliance not only in joint military drills, but also on American statements that the alliance is 'ironclad,' said Derek Grossman, a senior defense analyst at RAND Corporation. 'The Trump administration is trying to keep the pressure on China through its support to the Philippines," Grossman said, but added that it's unclear 'just how sustainable this commitment will be given that the Trump administration seems less hawkish on China than its predecessors.' China has vehemently opposed such exercises involving U.S. forces in or near the South China Sea or Taiwan, the island democracy, which Beijing claims as a province and has threatened to annex by force if necessary. U.S. and Philippine military officials, however, have insisted that the combat exercises were not designed with China in mind but serve as a deterrence to acts of aggression in the region.
