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Politics
Noel Morada, Director (Regional Diplomacy and Capacity Building) Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, The University of Queensland

As Australia strengthens its ties with the Philippines, it's wading even further into the dangerous South China Sea

Philippines United States Australia China Richard Marles South China Sea Ferdinand Marcos Jr the South China Sea Manila
LCPL Riley Blennerhassett/Australian Department of Defence/AP

At the end of last week, 1,200 Australian troops took part in a joint military exercise in the Philippines with hundreds of Filipino and American forces. Their mission: simulating the retaking of an island by a hostile force, presumably in the South China Sea.

Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles joined Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to observe the drills, reportedly the largest ever between the two nations. Marles then announced Australia would begin joint maritime patrols with the Philippines in the contested South China Sea very soon.

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