South China Sea: how does Philippines’ coastguard measure up against others?

Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam have boosted their naval and coastguard assets as tensions in the disputed waters continue to simmer

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Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr reviews coastguard personnel next to the patrol ship BRP Gabriela Silang on October 22. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 3:24pm, 31 Oct 2024

An injection of US$8 million by the US into the Philippine coastguard has shone the spotlight on Manila’s maritime strategy amid its ongoing territorial row with Beijing in the South China Sea while also bringing attention to similar fleets of claimant states in the region.

Observers say that coastguard fleet sizes and capabilities in the disputed waterway vary according to each nation’s history and strategic interests, with states such as Indonesia and Malaysia relying more on their navies to deter any foreign incursions.

One analyst argues that many regional countries do not possess adequate fleet sizes for their coastguards.

The Philippines, according to other experts, should hedge its bets on a hybrid strategy of “quiet diplomacy” and “active measures”, such as leveraging on US funding to improve its coastguard capabilities, even if the amount is not expected to yield any long-term boost to its defensive posture against increased Chinese aggression.

On Monday, the US embassy in the Philippines said in a statement that the US$8 million funding would support the Philippine coastguard’s (PCG) “infrastructure enhancements, training programme development and resource acquisition and management planning”.

Chris Gardiner, CEO of the Institute for Regional Security in Canberra, told This Week in Asia that the move was a modest contribution that complemented significant support already provided by Japan to the PCG.