The Philippines and Australia have commenced their largest-ever joint military exercises as regional tensions in the South China Sea continue to rise.
The exercises, which include drills in Palawan province facing the contested waters, will run from August 15 to 29, the Philippine military announced Friday night. The operations involve 3,600 military personnel from both countries, with additional participation from the Royal Canadian Navy and the United States Marine Corps.
“This marks the beginning of the most extensive and complex iteration of the bilateral defense exercise since its inception in 2023,” the Philippine military said.
The drills come as Manila increasingly seeks support from like-minded nations to counter Beijing’s assertive actions and overlapping sovereignty claims in the South China Sea. China’s expansive territorial claims in the strategic waterway have been rejected by a landmark ruling from the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which invalidated Beijing’s claims.
