US and Philippines begin annual drills in disputed South China Sea

Vice Admiral Karl Thomas, Commander of the US 7th Fleet (L) and Vice Admiral Toribio Adaci Jr, Flag Officer in Command of Philippine Navy Exercise Scheduling SAMASAMA 2023 (C), shake hands during the opening ceremony of Exercise SAMASAMA 2023, the annual bilateral navy-to-navy exercise between the Philippines and US at Philippine Navy Headquarters in Manila on Monday, October 2, 2023. - AFP

MANILA (AFP): The United States and the Philippines launched annual joint naval war games on Monday, days after the latest diplomatic row between Manila and Beijing over the disputed South China Sea.

More than a thousand sailors from the two allies are taking part in the annual "Samasama" (Tagalog for Together) anti-submarine, surface and electronic warfare drills off Manila and the south of Luzon, the main island of the Philippines.