Department Of Foreign Affairs News

Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has skipped COP28 in Dubai to personally address “important developments” in the hostage situation involving 17 Filipino seafarers.He is convening a meeting to facilitate the dispatch of a high-level delegation to Tehran, Iran, with the aim of providing necessary assistance to the seafarers.Marcos has assured the Filipino people that the government is doing all it can to ensure the safety of the 17 Filipino seafarers taken hostage by Houthi rebels in Yemen.Yemeni rebels seized the cargo vessel Galaxy Leader and took hostage its 25 crewmembers…

The Solomon Islands has awarded a multi-million-dollar contract to a Chinese state company to upgrade an international port in Honiara in a project funded by the Asian Development Bank, an official of the island nation said on Wednesday.The United States and its allies, including Australia, New Zealand and Japan, have held concerns that China has ambitions to build a naval base in the region since the Solomon Islands struck a security pact with Beijing last year."This will be upgrading the old international port in Honiara and two domestic wharves in the provinces…

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Sunday reported a recent incident of "close distance maneuvering" by a Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessel in the disputed South China Sea that "constrained" the movement of a Philippine ship sailing nearby.The March 2 incident took place during the PCG's maritime patrol operations around the Scarborough Shoal, locally known as Bajo de Masinloc, the PCG said in a news release.It was yet unclear whether the Philippines had lodged a diplomatic protest for the incident.

Philippine citizens infected with coronavirus on cruise ship rises to 80, others fly homeThe Philippines said on Tuesday that the number of its citizens who had tested positive for the coronavirus on a cruise ship docked in a Japanese port had risen to 80, as 400 others arrived back home.The Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that 80 Filipinos who had been on board the cruise ship Diamond Princess had been admitted to hospitals in Japan after testing positive for the virus. That was up from 59 reported on Monday.More than 400 other Philippine citizens arrived at Clark airbase late on Tuesday night on two Philippine Airlines’ aircraft chartered by the government…

Australia is sending more help to the Pacific nation of the Solomon Islands to stop oil from a grounded cargo ship destroying a World Heritage-listed marine sanctuary, Australia's foreign minister said on Sunday.At least 75 tonnes of heavy fuel oil has spilled from Hong Kong-flagged bulk carrier Solomon Trader since Cyclone Oma drove it onto a reef at Rennell Island on Feb. 5.The ship was carrying 700 tonnes of oil when it ran aground and there are fears the remaining fuel will spoil Rennell Island…

With an eye on China’s activities in the region, India said that the first meeting of its officials with those from the US, Australia and Japan — described as the “quadrilateral” — agreed that a “free, open, prosperous and inclusive Indo-Pacific region serves the long-term interests of all countries in the region and of the world at large”. "Officials from India’s Ministry of External Affairs, Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and United State’s Department of State met in Manila on November 12, 2017 for consultations on issues of common interest in the Indo-Pacific region," said a government release.

State-run Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC) has shortlisted six countries and will choose one from them as a partner for its planned US$2 billion receiving and distribution facility for imported LNG, Reuters reported. The company has received six proposals from China, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to co-build the LNG hub, PNOC’s head of LNG team and technical adviser Arwin Ardon quoted as saying. He said all proposals include storage, liquefaction, regassification, a power plant, and distribution facility as part of the LNG terminal. The construction of the project, which includes a 5 million tonnes-per-annum storage facility…

Drilling for oil and natural gas on the Reed Bank in the South China Sea may resume before the end of the year, a Philippine energy official said on Wednesday, as the government prepares to offer new blocks to investors in bidding in December. The Philippines suspended exploration at the Reed Bank, which it calls Recto Bank, in late 2014, as it pursued international arbitration over territorial disputes. The bank is in waters claimed by China. Ismael Ocampo, director at the Department of Energy's Resource Development Bureau, told reporters the agency expected the suspension to be lifted in December. He said a directive from the Department of Foreign Affairs directing the Department of Energy to resume oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea was already in the works.

When Tropical Cyclone Winston struck Fiji in February 2016, the deadly category 5 storm raked across the country with peak winds of 185 mph, damaging or destroying some 40,000 homes and causing an estimated $1.4 billion in damages. The strongest recorded tropical cyclone to make landfall in the South Pacific archipelago, Winston significantly damaged much of Fiji’s infrastructure, including to a number of maritime aids to navigation and lighthouse sites. The Australian Maritime…

In February 2016, Fiji suffered the devastating effects of Tropical Cyclone Winston. The cyclone caused significant damage to the infrastructure of Fiji, including to a number of maritime aids to navigation and lighthouse sites. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has worked closely with the Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji (MSAF) to install new navigation buoys and assess the damage to lighthouses in Fiji’s network. Two new low-maintenance polyethylene buoys with self-contained LED lights were installed a fortnight ago, in the waters of Levuka Passage. A third buoy will be installed, following a detailed bathymetric survey by the Fiji Hydrographic Service to identify a suitable location.

Australia’s newest military capability, the Amphibious Ready Element, has demonstrated its capacity in waters off the North Queensland coast during the Sea Series of exercises. Conducted by the Brisbane-based Deployable Joint Force Headquarters, under command of Major General Stuart Smith, the Sea Series of exercises enabled the amphibious force to achieve an interim operational capability. The Sea Series of exercises involved about 1100 embarked forces and crew on board HMAS Canberra with medium lift helicopters, landing craft and small boats, trucks, troop carriers and other vehicles. The embarked force included major elements from the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment, and 5th Aviation Regiment supported by HMAS Stuart, Air Force assets as well as other government agencies.

The Australian Defence Force is testing its newest amphibious capability ahead of the upcoming cyclone season. Exercise SEA RAIDER in Far North Queensland involves some 1400 troops embarked in HMAS Canberra with medium lift helicopters, landing craft and small boats, trucks, troop carriers and other vehicles. Conducted by the Brisbane based Deployable Joint Force Headquarters, under command of Major General Stuart Smith, Exercise SEA RAIDER is supported by HMAS Stuart, Air Force assets and Commando forces as well as other Government agencies. The ADF works closely with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade as the lead agency for Australian Government responses to overseas emergencies.

With increased awareness that strategic and security interests are converging given the geopolitical situation, India and Australia have agreed to hold their first ever bilateral naval exercise in this year and are planning to make the joint war game a regular feature in coming years. India, Japan and Australia have decided to deepen their ties in all sectors, especially in the field of maritime security, defence sources said. Sources say that plans for a trilateral exercise including Japan is also on the list. If all three nations – India, Japan and Australia agree to it, it will strengthen the ties in all sectors, especially in the field of maritime security and defence cooperation.

More than 33,000 U.S. and Australian personnel will participate in the biennial military training exercise Talisman Sabre 2015 in Australia July 4-19. Talisman Sabre, jointly sponsored by the U.S. Pacific Command and Australian Defence Force Headquarters Joint Operations Command, will incorporate U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force and the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army, and Royal Australian Air Force as well as other government agencies from each country. Featuring 21 ships, including the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) and more than 200 aircraft and three submarines, this sixth iteration of the exercise will focus on joint training of a combined task force of U.S.

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Philippines said China’s massive reclamation activities in the South China Sea have destroyed 300 acres of coral reef systems, which may lead to an estimated $100 million in annual economic losses in coastal states. "China’s massive reclamation activities are causing irreversible and widespread damage to the biodiversity and ecological balance of the South China Sea/West Philippine Sea," Philippine foreign affairs spokesman Charles Jose said. The DFA made the statement as it described as “unacceptable” China’s assurance that its reclamation activities are not causing ecological damage in the South China Sea.

The Philippines has submitted to a United Nations tribunal supplemental evidence for its arbitration case against China over disputed territories in the resource-rich South China Sea. The submission, which came to more than 3,000 pages, also mentioned China’s continued and massive reclamation activities in the areas claimed by the Philippines, though not in very great detail said the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) spokesman Charles Jose. Philippine officials said the additional questions raised by the tribunal meant that the case was actively moving forward even without China’s participation. Through the position paper, China meant to address the 4,000-page memorial or pleading that the Philippines filed against China in March 2014.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said it has commenced its Search and Rescue (SAR) Capability Partnership Program this week with counterpart agencies in Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Mauritius. This program is being delivered as part of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s Government Partnerships for Development program, which provides funds to eligible Australian public sector organizations to support economic growth and poverty alleviation in developing countries in the Indian Ocean, Asia and Pacific Regions. AMSA will receive a total of $2.6 million in funding over three years to work in cooperation with the three partner countries and strengthen their national SAR services.

Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel have arrived in Bougainville to address a potentially deadly legacy posed by unexploded ordnance from past conflicts as part of Operation RENDER SAFE 2014. HMAS Choules is in the vicinity of Torokina carrying approximately 500 personnel and is equipped with an MRH90 Helicopter and an LCM-8 Landing craft. The Operation RENDER SAFE 2014 Commander, Captain (CAPT) Jay Bannister, says his team is looking forward to the task. “The operation has been months in the planning, involving both Defence and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,” CAPT Bannister said. “The people of Bougainville have been most welcoming and we have been working very closely with them to identify explosive remnants of war which pose a threat to local communities.

HMAS Tobruk has completed its mission in the Philippines and is returning to Australia with a load of Army engineer machinery, vehicles and 35 Army personnel. A small Recovery Support Force of 65 combat engineers, tradesmen and support personnel, mostly from Townsville’s 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment, will remain in Ormoc for a further week to continue clean-up and repair tasks coordinated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Philippine Government. Commander of Joint Task Force 630 Lieutenant Colonel Rod Lang said the departing engineers and HMAS Tobruk’s crew had achieved their mission to help with the Philippines’ recovery.

A Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C-130J Hercules has departed RAAF Base Amberley to transport a Department of Foreign Affairs advisor and Defence personnel to the Solomon Islands following severe floods. A team of 11 Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel has departed with a specialist advisor from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). This team will conduct an initial assessment to scope what assistance will be required. The deployment follows a request for assistance from the Government of the Solomon Islands to Australia on April 5.

SeaArk Marine, Inc. recently completed the first two boats of a five boat contract for the Haiti Coast Guard. The vessels were purchased through the Global Peace and Security Fund, administered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT), through the Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC). The contract included SeaArk Model 40-ft V Dauntless Class vessels. Length, o.a. Length, w.l. Displacement lbs. The vessel and her crew are tasked with law enforcement…