South China Sea: will Australia, Japan join US-Philippines ‘freedom of navigation’ patrols?

Manila is in talks with Canberra and Tokyo to launch multilateral South China Sea patrols, according to the Philippines’ ambassador to Washington

Japan and Australia already have trilateral naval exercises with the US and ‘would like to join in for joint patrols’ as well, the envoy said

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US and Australian warships carry out joint exercises in the Pacific Ocean last year. Australia and the US have separately been discussing joint patrols with the Philippines, amid concerns about China’s assertiveness in the South China Sea. Photo: US Navy Handout

Published: 9:40am, 28 Feb 2023Updated: 9:50am, 28 Feb 2023

The Philippines is in talks to possibly include Australia and Japan in planned joint South China Sea patrols with the United States, according to a senior diplomat, in another sign of concern over Beijing’s activities in the strategic waters.

“Meetings have already been set and probably we may have the Japanese and the Australians join in,” Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez said on Monday.

“They would like to join in for joint patrols to make sure that there’s the code of conduct and there’s freedom of navigation,” he said, adding it was still “an idea under discussion”.

If the plan materialises, it will be the first time the Philippines has joined multilateral maritime patrols in the South China Sea, a move that would likely anger Beijing, which claims most of the sea as its territory.

The foreign ministries of Australia and Japan and the embassies of the United States and China in Manila did not immediately respond to separate requests for comment.

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