The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Australian Defence Force (ADF) commenced Exercise ALON 2025 with a series of coordinated maritime activities off Southwest Lubang Island, Mindoro, on Tuesday, August 19.
Active naval assets on the scene were Philippine Navy’s BRP Jose Rizal (FF150) and the ADF’s HMAS Brisbane (DDG41). The two maritime ships conducted exercises on personnel transfer drills, Communications Exercise (COMMEX), Officer of the Watch Manning Exercise (OOW MANNEX), Combined Anti-Submarine Exercise (CASEX), night steaming in company, and flight quarters drills.
“These activities were designed to enhance interoperability, improve operational readiness, and strengthen maritime security cooperation between the AFP and ADF,” the AFP said in their Facebook post.
Approximately 3,600 soldiers from the Philippines and Australia are participating in the exercise, including observers from New Zealand, Canada, America, and Indonesia.
The AFP aims to reach the exclusive economic zone of the country which is the West Philippine Sea (WPS) where China still has their fleet present.
Canada’s Royal Canadian Navy ship HMCS Ville de Québec is also expected to join the Philippines in conducting drills in the WPS, according to Lt. Col. John Paul Salgado, assistant chief of the AFP public affairs office.
Philippine Navy to conduct more MCAs
Philippine Navy (PN) spokesperson Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad affirms that the Philippines will have more maritime cooperative activities (MCAs) with other countries this year.
"Our Department of National Defense has been very strong in defense diplomacy. And there (are) more coming, more (in the) works. The moment these are finalized, you will be informed accordingly," PN spokesperson Rear Admiral Trinidad shared to the media at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City.
Trinidad also clarified that they did not evacuate Bajo de Masinloc, contrary to the National Maritime Council’s statement that it would not send a warship to the traditional fishing ground.
Trinidad further explains that they were not purposely assigned to guard humanitarian activities along the WPS because it is initially tasked for law enforcement agencies such as the Philippines Coast Guard (PCG).
Last week, the PCG was involved in China Coast Guard’s collision with a People’s Liberation Army-Navy warship No. 164 when China’s hull number 3104 chased BRP Suluan which resulted to both ships sustaining damage, and leaving CCG-3104’s with a crushed forecastle (upper deck).
However, PN spokesperson Trinidad expressed that there is a noticeable change among the CCG and the People’s Liberation Army navy (PLAN) whenever the country has a scheduled MCA.
"So we have noticed that for every MCA, there is a change in their actions. There are no coercive and aggressive actions being conducted by the CCG and the PLAN against our ships from the Coast Guard, BFAR (Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources), Navy and our aircraft," said PN spokesperson Rear Admiral Trinidad.
