The fourth Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (MMCA) carried out by the Philippines, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) reinforced the five nations’ mutual pledge to ensure the uninterrupted movement of ships or aircraft passing through the broader South China Sea (SCS).
This was stressed by General Romeo Brawner Jr., chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), on Saturday night, Sept. 28, as he concluded the coordinated sail by the military with its counterparts from Canberra, Tokyo, Wellington, and Washington.
“This underscores our shared commitments to upholding the right to freedom of navigation and overflight, other lawful uses of the sea and international airspace, as well as respect for maritime rights under international law, as reflected in the UN [United Nations] Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” the military chief said.
The joint sail was conducted within the vicinity of the WPS under the area of operations of the Northern Luzon Command (Nolcom).
A range of naval and aerial assets joined the activity namely the guided-missile frigate BRP Antonio Luna (FF151), patrol ship BRP Emilio Jacinto (PS35), and one AW109 helicopter from the Philippine Navy (PN) as well as rescue assets from the Philippine Air Force (PAF); light cruiser HMAS Sydney (D48), anti-submarine aircraft P-8 Poseidon, and one helicopter from Australia; destroyer JS Sazanami (DD113) from Japan; auxiliary oiler replenishment ship HMNZS Aotearoa (A-11) from New Zealand; and destroyer USS Howard (DDG83) and two helicopters from the US.
Brawner said that the five nations introduced enhanced exercises to the maritime patrol which are “designed to improve interoperability among participating forces.”
The activities included pre-sail briefings, communication exercises (COMMEX), cross-deck exercises, division tactics/officer of the watch (Divtacs/OOW) drills, photographic exercises (PHOTOEX), replenishment at sea (RAS) approaches, maritime domain awareness (MDA) exercises, and contact reporting.
“The conduct of the MCA manifests the AFP's dedication to strengthening partnerships and enhancing collective capabilities with like-minded nations to address emerging maritime security challenges,” Brawner noted.
He also praised the New Zealand for joining the WPS coordinated sail for the first time in the short history of the MMCA, which was launched in November last year.
He said New Zealand's participation "[added] a new dimension to the collaborative efforts" of the Philippines and its allies to keep a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
In recent years, the Philippines has increased its military engagement with traditional allies, such as the US with which it has a defense treaty, and friendly nations to assert its position in the WPS and push back against China’s claims in the troubled waters.
The tension on the waters spilled over the skies as the AFP reported several “dangerous maneuvers” by Chinese aircraft against Philippine aircraft.
Last Aug. 8, two multi-role fighters of the Chinese military fired flares and flew dangerously close to a Philippine Air Force (PAF) aircraft during a routine patrol over Bajo de Masinloc (Scarborough or Panatag Shoal).
The firing of flare and dangerous maneuver was repeated on Aug. 19 and 22, only this time, it involved a Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) plane that were on routine aerial patrol missions.
China, however, described the incidents as “necessary countermeasures” that had to be undertaken by its military to thwart Philippine aircraft that were “trespassing” into its territory.
A 2016 arbitral ruling has already invalidated China’s dash-line claims in the vast SCS in favor of the Philippines’ protest, but Beijing continues to ignore the decision.
No Chinese drill
Meanwhile, the AFP said it did not observe any naval exercise on the part of the Chinese People's Liberation Army-Navy (PLA-N) in the vicinity of the MMCA exercise area even as it conducted a close monitoring.
The PLA's South Theater Command earlier announced that it organized naval and air forces to conduct "routine reconnaissance, early warning, and sea-air patrol exercises near the waters surrounding China's Huangyan Island," the name it calls Scarborough Shoal on the same day of the MMCA.
"While there were observations of PLA-N vessels tailing during the MMCA, no reports were received regarding the conduct of the alleged Chinese military exercise," Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, AFP spokesperson, said in a statement on Sunday, Sept. 29.
She said despite the presence of Chinese vessels, the MMCA "proceeded as planned without any interference, and the safety of participating countries' vessels was ensured by the protocols in place."
She, however, did not discuss in detail the protocols observed during the MMCA.
She said the MMCA was "completed successfully" and all planned activities and scenarios were executed without any incidents.