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Philippine navy personnel stand in formation during a send-off ceremony. Photo: EPA

Drills between US and Asean nations kick off, will extend into South China Sea

  • The first Asean-US Maritime Exercise between the regional bloc and Washington lasts for five days
  • The drills coincide with stepped-up US engagement in the region and tensions between Beijing and Southeast Asian nations
Asean
Eight warships, four aircraft and more than 1,000 personnel from the US and 10 Southeast Asian countries joined maritime drills kicking off on Monday, as part of a joint exercise extending into the flashpoint South China Sea.
The first Asean-US Maritime Exercise (AUMX) between the regional bloc and Washington lasts for five days, starting at the Sattahip Naval Base in Thailand and ending in Singapore.
The drills coincide with stepped-up US engagement in the region and tensions between Beijing and Southeast Asian nations over the South China Sea, parts of which are claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Co-led by the US and Royal Thai navies, the exercises will stretch into “international waters in Southeast Asia, including the Gulf of Thailand and South China Sea” before concluding in Singapore, according to a statement from the US embassy in Bangkok.

“AUMX builds greater maritime security on the strength of Asean, the strength of our navy-to-navy bonds, and the strength of our shared belief in a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Rear Admiral Joey Tynch, who oversees the US Navy’s security cooperation in Southeast Asia.
The joint drills have come under criticism for looping in Myanmar’s navy in a rare show of inclusion despite Washington imposing sanctions on top army brass over the Rohingya crisis.
Philippine navy personnel stand in formation during a send-off ceremony. Photo: EPA

All 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will take part in the exercises which include the boarding of target vessels to simulate search and seizure.

They are unfolding as a Chinese survey ship remains in waters claimed by Vietnam, prompting the Pentagon last week to accuse Beijing of efforts to “violate the rules-based international order throughout the Indo-Pacific”.

Should China be worried about the US-Asean sea drill?

China claims the majority of the South China Sea, often invoking its so-called nine-dash line as a supposed historic justification to the waters, which are a key global shipping route.

On a trip to Thailand last month, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Southeast Asian nations to push back against Chinese “coercion” in the sea.

But in comments to students during a visit to the Cambodian capital on Monday, Malaysian leader Mahathir Mohamad said China had a right to feel “threatened” by exercises in the region, calling the drills provocative and a waste of money even as his country takes part in them.

“Now if China were to have naval exercises off New York,” he said to applause, “then I think the New Yorkers might not feel so comfortable.”

At the opening ceremony on Monday, US naval officer Rear Admiral Kenneth Whitesell said the multilateral exercise demonstrates America’s commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific”, which Washington has been promoting to counter China’s increasing influence in Asia, including Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea.

We are in the Indo-Pacific to stay
US Rear Admiral Kenneth Whitesell

“We are a robust constellation of allies and partners working collectively towards continued security and stability of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Whitesell. “There is no better signal of our desire to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific than the robust diversity of US naval operations in this region.”

The US has accused China of bullying behaviour and recently sailed an aircraft carrier through the disputed waters, one in a series of shows of military might that it calls freedom of navigation operations.

“We are in the Indo-Pacific to stay,” said Whitesell. “My promise to you is that we will stand shoulder to shoulder with all nations who share a mutual respect for and adherence to international law, as well as a vision of free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Additional reporting by Associated Press

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Drills between US and Asean forces under way
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