US, Japan, Philippines Hold South China Sea Military Exercise

RunWithRugs · 2026-03-01T19:23:07+00:00

The Philippines, alongside American and Japanese forces, conducted a joint military exercise in the South China Sea amid Chinese naval activity. The drill aimed to enhance interoperability and maritime security, while China criticized the exercise as destabilizing.

RunWithRugs

2026-03-01 19:23:07

Abstract generation in progress

(MENAFN) The armed forces of the Philippines announced Friday that American, Japanese, and Filipino troops conducted a week-long joint military exercise in the South China Sea from Feb. 20 to 26, as Chinese naval vessels made two separate appearances during the operation.

The Philippine military described the drill as one that “underscores the sustained commitment of partner forces to enhance interoperability, reinforce maritime security, and improve Maritime Domain Awareness in the region.”

The exercise brought together a significant assemblage of hardware. Manila contributed its Antonio Luna frigate, AW159 helicopters, and FA-50 fighter jets, while Washington deployed the guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey alongside a Poseidon surveillance aircraft. Tokyo positioned a P-3 Orion patrol plane for the duration of the operation.

Activities throughout the week included communications drills, maritime domain awareness operations, replenishment-at-sea maneuvers, joint air patrols, and fly-bys.

Speaking to reporters from a Tokyo-based news agency, Capt. Jennifer Monforte of the Philippine Navy frigate Antonio Luna framed the exercise in broader strategic terms, stating the drill was aimed at enhancing “the interoperability of our armed forces to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Monforte also addressed the Chinese naval presence directly. “It should not be viewed with concern, nor should it be seen by our neighbors as a provocative act,” he said, pointedly referencing the “illegal presence” of two Chinese navy ships that appeared on separate days during the exercise.

Beijing pushed back swiftly. China accused the Philippines of “disrupting peace and stability in the South China Sea, as it co-opted countries outside the region” to organize patrols — framing Manila as the destabilizing actor in the dispute.

Zhai Shichen, spokesman for the People’s Liberation Army Southern Theater Command, maintained that the theater’s navy “command conducted a routine patrol in the South China Sea from Feb. 23 to 26,” citing an official Defense Ministry statement.

Zhai added that theater command forces “will resolutely safeguard China’s territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests, and firmly uphold regional peace and stability.”

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