PH, US conduct bilateral sail in West Philippine Sea

From CNN Philippines (Sep 4, 2023): PH, US conduct bilateral sail in West Philippine Sea (By CNN Philippines Staff)

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 4) – The navies of Manila and Washington launched a bilateral sail in the West Philippine Sea, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said Monday.

The Philippine Navy’s guided-missile frigate BRP Jose Rizal (FF150) and the US Navy’s Alrleigh Burke-class guided missile-destroyer USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) will carry out “Division Tactics rehearsal” as part of the operation, the AFP said.

The ongoing bilateral sail off Palawan is being conducted under a “Mutual Defense Board – Security Engagement Board framework” and it aims to strengthen maritime cooperation and operational interoperability between Manila and Washington’s navies.

It is also seen as an opportunity to test and refine the Philippine Navy and the US’ Indo-Pacific Navy’s “existing maritime doctrine” and to demonstrate their capabilities in the region.

The bilateral sail comes just a week after Beijing released its “10-dash line map,” a move which Manila protested. The expanded claim covered nearly the entire South China Sea and overlapped with the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, and Indonesia.

The West Philippine Sea is the portion of the South China Sea which is part of the Philippines’ EEZ.

READ: PH rejects, protests China’s expanded 10-dash line in South China Sea

In 2016, an arbitral tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines and invalidated China’s previous “nine-dash line” claim that overlapped with Manila’s EEZ and continental shelf.

Meanwhile, Manila and Washington are still working out the details of the joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea, which could come to fruition this year.

READ: PH-US finalizing joint patrols in WPS - NSC official

https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2023/9/4/ph-us-bilateral-sail-palawan.html