A high-ranking U.S. military official on Thursday confirmed the participation of the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) missiles during recent joint military exercises between the United States and the Philippines.
During the closing remarks of the Pacific Amphibious Leaders Symposium in Manila, Philippines, on July 10, U.S. Navy Admiral Steve Koehler, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, said that NMESIS was deployed during Balikatan and took part in battle drills, but no missiles were fired.
Asked about the NMESIS missiles, Lt. Gen. Michael Cederholm, commanding general of the U.S. 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, told reporters: “I don’t go into details because of operational security reasons, but we got great training from our NMESIS batteries that we brought.”
The NMESIS, an anti-ship missile system, is designed to strike surface vessels from land-based positions at a distance of about 185 kilometers.
Previously, Navy spokesperson Capt. John Percie Alcos said NMESIS “will remain in our country for as long as training opportunities are still available for us.”
The deployment of NMESIS was initially announced by U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on March 28 during his visit to Manila.
He reaffirmed Washington’s unwavering commitment to its oldest treaty and military ally in the region.
Aside from NMESIS, the American Typhon midrange capability missile system is also currently in the country.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Wednesday reported a significant decrease in the number of Chinese maritime militia vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), attributing the reduction to unfavorable weather conditions over the past several days.
“Because of the extremely bad weather in the WPS, even the Chinese maritime militia swarming in those areas have significantly decreased,” said Commodore Jay Tarriela, PCG spokesperson for WPS matters, at a forum in Manila.
“There is no longer a large number of swarming vessels at Rozul Reef and also in Hasa-Hasa Shoal,” he added.
When asked about the past and current number of Chinese maritime militia vessels in the area, Tarriela said he currently does not have the figures.
On Tuesday, the Philippine Navy reported an increase in the number of Chinese vessels spotted around certain features in the West Philippine Sea in June.
Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, the Navy’s spokesperson for WPS matters, said a total of 49 vessels from the China Coast Guard (CCG) and the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) were monitored in the area.
Specifically, Trinidad noted that nine CCG and 14 PLAN vessels were seen near Bajo de Masinloc; 12 CCG and two PLAN vessels near Ayungin Shoal; and nine CCG along with three PLAN vessels near Pagasa Island.
“These 49 ships were not there all the time, but they were in and out of the different features,” Trinidad said.
According to him, the June record was the highest reported number of Chinese vessels in the WPS, compared to 11 in January, nine in February, 35 in March, 31 in April, and 41 in May.
The West Philippine Sea refers to the maritime areas on the western side of the Philippine archipelago, including the Luzon Sea and the waters around, within, and adjacent to the Kalayaan Island Group and Bajo de Masinloc.
