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South China Sea
This Week in AsiaPolitics

South China Sea: ‘bullied by China’? Philippine-Vietnam joint drills mark peace bid

  • Observers say both Asean nations could pave the way for how territorial disputes can be settled in the contested waters

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Philippine coastguards transfer supplies in the South China Sea. Photo: SCMP/China Coast Guard
Sam Beltran
Philippine and Vietnam coastguards are in talks for first-ever joint drills despite overlapping claims in the South China Sea, the latest in a series of steps between Southeast Asian neighbours towards a peaceful settlement of maritime disputes.

Delegates of the Vietnam coastguard, as well as a 2,400-tonne vessel from their side, will reportedly be in Manila in August as both parties seek to finalise plans for a joint exercise on search-and-rescue and fire-and-explosion prevention.

Observers say a peaceful negotiation between Hanoi and Manila over their overlapping claims to extended continental shelves may undermine Beijing’s own assertions.

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The closer cooperation between the Philippines and Vietnam comes amid heightened maritime tensions, with Beijing’s increasingly assertive actions affecting both countries as it lays claim to nearly the entire South China Sea.
China says Vietnam’s request to expand its continental shelf encompasses parts of the Spratly Islands, a disputed archipelago claimed by both Beijing and Hanoi. Photo: Reuters
China says Vietnam’s request to expand its continental shelf encompasses parts of the Spratly Islands, a disputed archipelago claimed by both Beijing and Hanoi. Photo: Reuters
The planned exercises between Hanoi and Manila follow a memorandum of understanding for coastguards of both sides, signed by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr during his visit to the Vietnamese capital in January, where he called his host the “sole strategic partner of the Philippines”.
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