US Joins Five-Nation Military Exercise in South China Sea

By Ainslie Chandler

September 27, 2024 at 10:16PM EDT

Philippine Coast Guard personnel on the lookout during a resupply mission for the BRP Sierra Madre, in the disputed South China Sea, on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. Both China and the Philippines lay claims over the shoal while at least three other neighbors also claim the larger Spratly Islands chain it nestles in. Photographer: Lisa Marie David/Bloomberg (Lisa Marie David/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- The US, Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the Philippines will undertake a joint military activity in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea on Sept. 28.

“The Maritime Cooperative Activity demonstrates our collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” the Australian Defence Department said in a statement Saturday.

The exercise comes amid rising tensions between Beijing and Manila over competing claims in the South China Sea.

Australia’s HMAS Sydney and a Royal Australian Air Force P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft would participate, according to the statement.