Philippines, India navies end 1st joint exercise

MANILA, Philippines — A day after President Marcos left for New Delhi for a five-day state visit, the Philippine Navy and Indian Navy concluded their first ever bilateral Maritime Cooperative Activity (MCA) or joint sail in the West Philippine Sea, which began on Aug. 3.

Col. Xerxes Trinidad, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) public affairs office, said the joint naval engagement stretched from Masinloc, Zambales to Cabra Island in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro.

The Philippine Navy deployed the BRP Jose Rizal and the BRP Miguel Malvar for the MCA, with the Philippine Air Force sending a search and rescue aircraft and a C-208B reconnaissance plane.

The Indian Navy sent its guided missile destroyer INS Delhi, anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kiltan and the fleet replenishment tanker INS Shakti. Two multi-role naval helicopters joined the Indian flotilla.

Key drills conducted included rendezvous operations, communication checks, air defense exercises and maneuvering drills with photo exercise.

“The results were excellent,” AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said in assessing the outcome of the MCA.

“We have met our objectives for the exercise. First time in history that we had this joint sail with the Indian Navy. We are hoping to have more of these exercises and activities with the Indian armed forces,” Brawner said.

In a statement, the AFP said the success of the MCA with India “underscores the two nations’ readiness to work together in promoting maritime domain awareness and supporting a peaceful, stable and secure region.”