MANILA: The US, Australia, Canada and the Philippines held air and naval manoeuvres on Wednesday in what they said was a show of force to promote the rule of law in the disputed South China Sea, where China has increasingly asserted its territorial claims. In an apparent response, China said it conducted air and sea combat patrols on the same day.
In a joint statement, they said they were staging the two-day exercises to uphold unhindered passage in the Indo-Pacific region.