This handout photo from the Australian military's Joint Operations Command shows ships from the Philippines, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the United States in a Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity in the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone. Australian Defense Force Joint Operations Command

MANILA (2nd UPDATE) — The militaries of the Philippines, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the United States are holding joint maritime drills in the Philippines Exclusive Economic Zone on Saturday, Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, said.

In a statement Saturday, Brawner said the Multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity involves naval and air force units of the participating countries and "demonstrates a collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific."

The AFP chief did not give details of participating units, but the Australian defense ministry said in a release that HMAS Sydney and a Royal Australian Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft are joining the exercise, "enhancing cooperation and interoperability between our armed forces."

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The Philippines has been increasing training engagements with foreign partners and upgrading its defense agreements with them — it signed an agreement in July to allow Japanese troops access to the Philippines, and vice versa — in the face of increasingly aggressive moves by China in the West Philippine Sea.

China has ignored a 2016 arbitral ruling invalidating its sweeping claims over the South China Sea — part of which is the West Philippine Sea — and blames tension in the area on the Philippines and on the United States and other Western nations.

Countries participating in the multilateral "cooperative activity" have raised concerns about Chinese actions in the West Philippine Sea, which has included the use of water cannons, aggressive maneuvers, and the deliberate ramming of Philippine Coast Guard ships.

CHINESE AGGRESSIVENESS IN WEST PHILIPPINE SEA

The Philippine Coast Guard earlier this week was monitoring the presence of a Chinese research vessel and its six maritime militia escorts in the West Philippine Sea near Palawan in what an American analyst called a "survey in force."

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Chinese ships also swarmed Coast Guard patrol ship BRP Teresa Magbanua, which had been deployed to Escoda (Sabina) Shoal in the West Philippine Sea since April, cutting off supplies and eventually forcing her to return to Palawan for resupply, repairs and to provide medical care to dehydrated personnel.

Chinese presence in the West Philippine Sea has also affected the livelihoods of Filipino fisherfolk, especially those who fish in Bajo de Masinloc (Panatag, Scarborough Shoal), a traditional fishing ground off Zambales that China has been restricting access to.

"The activity will be conducted in a manner consistent with international law and with due regard to the safety of navigation and the rights and interests of other States," Brawner also said, adding the multilateral drills shows the participating countries' commitments to freedom of navigation and overflight.

The national democratic activist movement, which has also protested Chinese actions in the West Philippine Sea, have cautioned against allowing more foreign militaries into Philippine waters and territory, saying "militarization" of the region risks dragging the Philippines into the rivalry between China and the US and its allies.

It has called for building up domestic defense capabilities, for diplomatic approaches and for calling for international support for the 2016 ruling and for joint civilian patrols by Southeast Asian nations, including those with competing claims in the South China Sea.

CHINA HOLDS OWN DRILLS

China on Saturday also announced naval exercises around Scarborough Shoal, over which it claims “indisputable sovereignty.”

“The PLA Southern Theater Command on Saturday organized naval and air forces to conduct routine reconnaissance, early warning, and sea-air patrol exercises near the waters surrounding China's Huangyan Island. Certain individual external countries are stirring up trouble in the South China Sea, creating instability in the region,” the People’s Liberation Army Southern Theater Command said in a statement, as reporter by state media Global Times.

“The theater's troops remain on high alert, resolutely defending national sovereign security and maritime rights, and are committed to maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea,“ it added.

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