ZAMBALES. A joint U.S.-Philippine ship-sinking drill scheduled as one of the highlights of the ongoing Balikatan military exercises was abruptly cancelled on Monday after the World War II-era target vessel, BRP Miguel Malvar, sank prematurely while being towed in rough waters.
Military officials from both countries confirmed that the decommissioned Philippine Navy ship, an 80-year-old vessel once used by the U.S. Navy, took on water and submerged about 30 nautical miles (55 kilometers) off the coast of Zambales, facing the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the West Philippine Sea. No personnel were onboard at the time of the incident.
“It’s an 80-year-old dilapidated ship, and it wasn’t able to withstand the rough seas,” said Philippine Lt. Col. John Paul Salgado in a statement to the Associated Press.
The ship, which was retired from active service in 2021, was to have served as the mock target in a live-fire exercise intended to showcase precision and coordination between the two long-standing treaty allies. Despite the incident, U.S. and Philippine forces proceeded with other planned maneuvers on Monday in the same area.
According to Philippine Navy Capt. John Percie Alcos, the BRP Miguel Malvar, had a storied past: built in the 1940s for the U.S. Navy, transferred to the South Vietnamese Navy, and later acquired by the Philippines.
The aborted drill would have marked the third such joint ship-sinking event in recent years. It was part of the broader Balikatan 2025 exercises, named from the Tagalog word meaning “shoulder-to-shoulder,” running from April 21 to May 9, involving around 14,000 troops from the United States and the Philippines. The annual drills have increasingly emphasized maritime defense amid rising tensions with China in the region.
The now-cancelled exercise was particularly symbolic, as it was planned near Scarborough Shoal—a traditional Philippine fishing ground now closely monitored by Chinese coast guard and suspected maritime militia vessels. Scarborough Shoal lies roughly 220 kilometers (137 miles) west of Zambales and has been the site of multiple tense encounters between Chinese and Philippine forces in recent years.
Over the weekend, U.S., Australian, and Philippine forces also staged a mock amphibious assault in Balabac, Palawan, another area facing the South China Sea. Japanese and British forces joined as observers. Salgado noted that the activity “showcased the growing interoperability and cohesion among partner nations in maintaining regional security.”
The continued emphasis on alliance coordination comes amid renewed vows by U.S. leaders to uphold their mutual defense treaty obligations under the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other Trump administration officials have reiterated these commitments in light of regional instability.
“What we have seen since Trump returned to the White House is a remarkable level of continuity in the U.S.-Philippines alliance not only in joint military drills, but also on American statements that the alliance is ‘ironclad,’” said Derek Grossman, a senior defense analyst at the RAND Corporation.
Grossman noted, however, that while Washington is maintaining strong support for Manila, “it’s unclear just how sustainable this commitment will be given that the Trump administration seems less hawkish on China than its predecessors.”
Beijing has long protested such military activities near contested areas, including those involving the U.S. in the South China Sea and around Taiwan, an island it considers a breakaway province. However, both American and Philippine officials stress that Balikatan is not aimed at any specific country, but rather serves as a deterrent to aggression and a testament to allied readiness in the Indo-Pacific.
As drills continue, the premature sinking of BRP Miguel Malvar stands as an unexpected twist in the series of large-scale operations designed to reinforce security partnerships in a volatile maritime region.
Si Venus L Peñaflor ay naging editor-in-chief ng Newsworld, isang lokal na pahayagan ng Laguna. Publisher din siya ng Daystar Gazette at Tutubi News Magazine. Siya ay isa ring pintor at doll face designer ng Ninay Dolls, ang unang Manikang Pilipino. Kasali siya sa DesignCrowd sa rank na #305 sa 640,000 graphic designers sa buong daigdig. Kasama din siya sa unang Local TV Broadcast sa Laguna na Beyond Manila. Aktibong kasapi siya ng San Pablo Jaycees Senate bilang isang JCI Senator.
- Venus L Peñaflorhttps://tutubi.ph/author/venusp/
- Venus L Peñaflorhttps://tutubi.ph/author/venusp/
- Venus L Peñaflorhttps://tutubi.ph/author/venusp/
- Venus L Peñaflorhttps://tutubi.ph/author/venusp/
