The Philippine and Australian navies will hold a 10-day training exercise aimed at enhancing cooperation between their forces in joint operations, an official said Thursday. The training exercise will be held in the western province of Palawan from Friday to August 30, said Captain Geronimo Malabanan, spokesman for the Philippine navy. Malabanan said the Royal Australian Navy was dispatching two vessels for the exercise, which will also be held in the nearby Cagayan Islands and Tubbataha reefs. The Philippine Navy will send two vessels, an aircraft and a team from its special warfare unit for the exercise. "The exercise aims to enhance interoperability and operational readiness between the participating forces in combined naval operations," Malabanan said. He said the main phase of the training will include exercises on seamanship, tactics, maritime surveillance and gunnery. There will also be briefings on operational procedures.
