Philippines and Vietnam Coast Guards hold first joint exercise, drawing attention.

On Friday, August 9, the Philippine and Vietnamese coast guard held firefighting and search and rescue exercises in the waters off Manila, marking the first joint exercise between the two countries that have territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea, attracting widespread attention.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) announced on social media platform X on Friday that “from August 5 to 9, under the leadership of Colonel Hoang Quoc Dat of the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) Second Zone Command, the Vietnam Coast Guard vessel CSB 8002 made its first port visit to the Consulate General in Manila.”

According to a report by BBC Chinese on the 9th, defense scholar and lecturer at De La Salle University in Manila, Philippines, Don McLain Gil, who focuses on defense research, stated that this cooperation is a statement by both countries against Beijing’s influence.

Earlier, when the Vietnamese coast guard vessel departed Vietnamese waters for the Philippines on Wednesday, July 31, the Vietnamese Ministry of Defense stated in a declaration that the visit had “significant political significance.”

The 90-meter long, 2,400-ton Vietnamese coast guard vessel CSB 8002 arrived in Manila on Monday, August 5, and conducted simulated exercises for firefighting, rescue, and medical emergencies with the Philippine patrol vessel “BRP Gabriela Silang” in the nearby waters.

As part of the five-day port visit by the Vietnamese ship, the coast guards of both countries conducted a simulation of firefighting and rescue operations by using water cannons on a Philippine vessel in Manila Bay.

These two countries have long-standing territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea and are concerned about China’s increasingly assertive actions in this vital trade route. This joint exercise is the latest cooperation between the two nations.

Reuters reported that after the exercises, Commander Lawrence Roque of the “BRP Gabriela Silang” stated to the media on board the vessel, “Our exercises are more focused on humanitarian aspects. We hope to have more activities like this because the maritime area is vast, and many people need the assistance of coast guards.”

While conducting exercises with Vietnam, the Philippines had just finished a two-day maritime exercise with the militaries of Australia, Canada, and the United States on Thursday, August 8. This was the first time these four countries participated in such an exercise, with Manila stating that it aimed to promote freedom and openness in the Indo-Pacific region.

The Chinese Communist Party claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea and asserts its claims by deploying a large number of coast guard vessels in areas including the exclusive economic zones of neighboring countries. This has led to conflicts by coordinating fishing vessels and coast guard actions, destabilizing the South China Sea.

Former Dean of the College of Political Warfare at the Taiwan National Defense University, General Yu Zongji, told Epoch Times on August 3 that in the face of Chinese provocations and threats, “the most effective way now is to strengthen joint patrol cooperation between coast guards of various countries.”

This cooperation and joint exercises between the Philippines and Vietnam send a strong signal of unity against China’s aggressive actions in the South China Sea, reflecting the growing regional concern over Beijing’s activities in the disputed waters.