The US, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines are set to conduct their inaugural joint naval drills, featuring anti-submarine warfare exercises, as a display of strength this Sunday in the South China Sea, where Beijing’s assertive moves to defend its territorial interests have raised concerns.
The upcoming exercise is scheduled in the contested waterway, which Beijing asserts its ownership over. This event will take place shortly before US President Joe Biden’s inaugural trilateral summit with the leaders of the Philippines and Japan.
The defense chiefs of the four treaty allies and security partners released a joint statement on Saturday, emphasizing the importance of conducting exercises to protect the rule of law, which serves as the basis for a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific region. They also highlighted their commitment to upholding freedom of navigation and overflight.
The statement released by the Japanese embassy in Manila announced the incorporation of “anti-submarine warfare training” in the upcoming drills. The arrival of the Australian warship HMAS Warramunga at Palawan, a Philippine island situated in the disputed waters, occurred earlier this week. These military exercises and the subsequent summit come in the wake of several clashes between Chinese and Philippine ships near contested reefs in the Southeast Asian region over the past few months. China has accused the Philippines of escalating tensions in the disputed waterway, which has been a focal point of maritime territorial disputes between Beijing and Manila for an extended period.
US officials have consistently affirmed their unwavering dedication to safeguarding the Philippines from any armed aggression in the South China Sea. The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson stated that discussions between the Philippines and Japan regarding a defense pact, which would enable both nations to deploy their troops on each other’s soil, are still in progress. It is worth noting that Manila has already established a comparable agreement with Australia and the United States.
