TAIPEI, Taiwan — A series of maritime exercises in the vicinity of the Philippines involving the United States and its allies has elicited strong objections from Beijing, which asserts its control over the entire South China Sea. Beijing has accused Manila of collaborating with foreign entities to disrupt regional stability.
On Wednesday, the U.S. 7th Fleet, stationed in Japan, reported that military forces from Australia, Japan, the Philippines, and the U.S. engaged in a “multilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity” within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Philippines.
The exercises are intended to enhance the interoperability of the involved nations’ defense strategies and operational procedures, as stated in a press release from the fleet. While the activities reportedly took place within Philippine territorial waters, specific locations were not disclosed.
Further naval exercises involving the U.S., Japan, and France are set to take place in the Philippine Sea later this week, a body of water that China does not assert claims over.
This upcoming drill aims to bolster coordination among Maritime forces from France, Japan, and the U.S., while also showcasing their capabilities in multi-domain operations, according to the fleet’s announcement.
Participating in the drills are the U.S. aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, the French carrier Charles De Gaulle, and Japan’s Izumo-class destroyer Kaga, alongside their accompanying escort vessels and air wings, starting Saturday.
France’s involvement is particularly noteworthy, given the significant distance from its base in Toulouse, located about 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles) away, as highlighted by Rear Adm. Jacques Mallard, commander of the Carrier Strike Group.
On the Chinese side, Tian Junli, spokesperson for China’s Southern Theater Command, criticized the Philippines for allegedly working with external nations to conduct “so-called joint patrols,” which he claims contribute to regional instability, as reported by Chinese state media.
Tian accused the Philippines of trying to legitimize its “illegal claims” in the South China Sea while undermining China’s maritime rights and interests. He specifically referred to U.S.-Philippines patrols earlier in the week and mentioned that China conducted its own patrols in the area on the following day.
China shares its territorial aspirations of the strategically valuable South China Sea with five other regional countries. Despite a ruling from a UN-backed tribunal that invalidated a significant portion of China’s claims, the country has continued to establish artificial islands equipped with military infrastructure. Chinese maritime forces often engage with vessels from Vietnam and the Philippines, which also assert rights to parts of the sea.
While China professes it does not interfere with shipping or air traffic in the region—important for facilitating approximately $5 trillion in global trade annually—it maintains a firm stance against foreign military presence in these waters.
The South China Sea is believed to contain substantial oil and gas reserves, and while China has expressed a willingness to achieve a negotiated resolution regarding use of the area, little progress has been made toward that goal.
Beijing contends that the U.S. and nations without direct connections to the sea should not have any involvement in its affairs, although the U.S. has sustained military bases and alliances in the region long before China asserted its sovereignty with the so-called “nine-dash line.” Beijing has grown increasingly irate over U.S. “freedom of navigation operations,” which involve U.S. Navy vessels navigating near Chinese-occupied maritime features to demonstrate the U.S.’s non-recognition of Chinese sovereignty claims.
