Philippines, US hold joint maritime drills in South China Sea

The BRP Sierra Madre in the South China Sea in 2023. The "maritime cooperative activity" included communication drills and search-and-rescue scenarios. - Reuters

MANILA: Coast Guard vessels of the Philippines and the United States have taken part for the first time in joint maritime exercises with naval and air force units in the contested South China Sea, Manila's armed forces said on Wednesday (May 21).

The exercises, held on Tuesday in waters off Palawan and Occidental Mindoro, involved the Philippine Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard, alongside the US Coast Guard Cutter Stratton and a US Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft.