AFP eyes 'elevating' WPS joint drills with US

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Monday said it plans to "elevate" the activities of the joint exercises with the United States in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).

“Moving forward, we plan to elevate these activities by incorporating more advanced training scenarios, expanding participation to include additional assets, and potentially involving other like-minded countries,” AFP spokesperson Colonel Francel Margareth Padilla said in a statement.

“This will strengthen our collective ability to address evolving security challenges and maintain peace and stability in the region,” she added.

Over the weekend, the AFP and the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) conducted the year's first Maritime Cooperative Activity (MCA) in the Palawan area.

Padilla said the MCA aims to improve the interoperability and operational capabilities of the Philippine and US militaries.

The focus of the drills is to promote a rules-based order in the maritime domain and ensure the peace and security of the region, according to Padilla.

“Specific benefits that this MCA brings to the Philippines’ ability to defend its maritime territory and sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea is that it strengthens our maritime domain awareness, improves our communication and coordination capabilities, and provides valuable training opportunities for our personnel,” Padilla said.

“These combined capabilities contribute to a more effective defense posture and enhance our ability to uphold our sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea,” she added.

The exercises were conducted amid the reported presence of Chinese vessels including the China Coast Guard's (CCG's) 5901 or the “monster ship” near the Zambales coast.

Last week, the Philippines filed a diplomatic protest and called on China to withdraw its monster ship from Philippine waters.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun on Tuesday defended their ship's intrusion inside Philippine territory.

"We have responded to similar questions multiple times. Let me reiterate that China’s sovereignty and rights and interests in the South China Sea were established in the long course of history and are solidly grounded in history and the law and compliant with the international law and practice," the official said.

Guo maintained the CCG "conducts patrols and law enforcement activities in relevant waters in accordance with the law, which is fully justified."

"We call on the Philippines once again to immediately stop all infringement activities, provocations, and false accusations, and stop all its actions that jeopardize peace and stability and complicate the situation in the South China Sea," he added.

Tensions continue as Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei.

In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines over China's claims in the South China Sea, saying that it had "no legal basis."

China refused to recognize the decision. — DVM, GMA Integrated News