Manila: Australian and Filipino forces, backed by US Marines, practised retaking an island seized by hostile forces in a large military drill on the north-western Philippine coast facing the disputed South China Sea.
The drills included mock beach landings, amphibious assaults and helicopter drops of personnel at a naval base in San Antonio, in Zambales province, and involved 1200 Australians, 560 Filipinos and 120 US Marines.
They followed exercises on Monday when the three countries’ forces conducted air assault manoeuvres in Rizal town in western Palawan province, which also faces the disputed waters.
The countries are among the most vocal critics of China’s increasingly aggressive and confrontational actions in the disputed waters, but the Philippine military said Beijing was not the envisioned target of the combat drills, the largest so far between Australia and the Philippines.
“It’s an important aspect of how we prepare for any eventuality and considering that there have been so many events that attest to the volatility of the region,” President Ferdinand Marcos jnr said after watching the Friday drills with and Philippine Defence Secretary Gilbert Teodoro jnr and visiting Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles.
Marles said in a separate news conference with his Philippine counterpart that the drills were aimed at promoting the rule of law and peace in the region.
“The message that we want to convey to the region and to the world from an exercise of this kind is that we are two countries committed to the global rules-based order,” Marles said. “We are committed to an idea of a world in which disputes are determined by reference to international law.”
“Peace is maintained through the protection of the global rules-based order and its functionality around the world and, in truth, around the world today, we see it under pressure,” Marles said.