Jamaine Punzalan

A student boarding team prepares to approach a larger vessel for a practice boarding in the Davao Gulf. US Embassy in Manila

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Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:950px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/173795680840301-27-2025-PR-U.S.-Philippines-Hold-Multinational-Training-Event-to-Strengthen-Maritime-Security-2-1024x768.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">A student boarding team prepares to approach a larger vessel for a practice boarding in the Davao Gulf. <em>US Embassy in Manila website</em></span></span></span></div><p>Coast guard and fishery officials from the Philippines, United States, Vietnam and Indonesia practised vessel boarding and arrest techniques at a joint maritime law enforcement training, the US Embassy in Manila said Monday.</p><p>The two-week course on the Philippines&#x27; southern island of Mindanao comes as part of a regional effort to boost law enforcement cooperation as fears of maritime conflict with China grow.</p><p>There have been frequent clashes or tense standoffs between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the strategic waterway, as well as recent incidents involving Vietnamese and Indonesian vessels.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/1/26/pcg-china-harassed-ph-vessel-with-high-decibel-acoustic-device-0928">China harassed PH vessel with high-decibel acoustic device</a></div><p>&quot;Together, we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that our maritime sovereignty remains a zone of peace, safety and prosperity for all,&quot; Philippine Coast Guard District Commander Rejard V. Marfe said in a statement released by the US embassy.</p><p>Marfe called the January 13-24 training &quot;invaluable in ensuring that we are better equipped to address maritime threats&quot;, though the statement made no mention of China.</p><p>The training covered safe vessel boarding at sea, maritime law, evidence collection and preservation, safety and risk mitigation and arrest techniques, according to the statement.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/1/26/pcg-says-smaller-philippine-vessel-wards-off-china-ship-in-zambales-coast-0011">PCG says smaller Philippine vessel wards off China ship in Zambales coast</a></div><p>The Australian Border Force joined the coast guard, customs enforcers and fisheries surveillance officials at the training as observers.</p><p>China has stepped up expansion of its naval forces in recent years as it seeks to extend its reach in the Pacific and challenge a US-led alliance.</p><p>In recent months, China has deployed navy and coast guard vessels to bar the Philippines from strategically important reefs and islands in the South China Sea.</p><p>In October, Hanoi accused Beijing of a &quot;brutal&quot; attack in which it said 10 Vietnamese fishermen were beaten with iron bars and robbed of thousands of dollars worth of fish and equipment.</p><p>And the same month, Indonesia said it drove a Chinese coast guard ship from contested waters in the South China Sea three times in a week.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/1/26/mainit-ang-ulo-sa-atin-ng-tsina-analyst-expects-fresh-harassment-in-west-ph-sea-1610">Fresh harassment from China Coast Guard in West PH Sea ‘expected’ amid presence of typhon missiles in PH – analyst</a></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>Coast guard and fishery officials from the Philippines, United States, Vietnam and Indonesia practised vessel boarding and arrest techniques at a joint maritime law enforcement training, the US Embassy in Manila said Monday.</p>

Coast guard and fishery officials from the Philippines, United States, Vietnam and Indonesia practised vessel boarding and arrest techniques at a joint maritime law enforcement training, the US Embassy in Manila said Monday.

Philippines, US, Vietnam, Indonesia train for maritime law enforcement cooperation

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Philippines, US, Vietnam, Indonesia train for maritime law enforcement cooperation

Agence France-Presse

Published January 27, 2025 01:56 PM PHT

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