[Photos by CG SN2 M Malnegro, CG ASN A Albania, CG ASN M Misuari / CGPA]
THE Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) participated in the Inter-Agency Exercise Alalayan 2023 in the vicinity waters off Manila Bay today, 11 August 2023.
According to National coast Watch Center (NCWC) Director and PCG’s Maritime Security Law Enforcement Commander, CG Vice Admiral Roy Echeverria, it aimed to test protocols and demonstrate NCWC and support agencies’ capabilities to detect, identify, and interdict maritime threats within the county’s waters.
Participating agencies also tested the Indian Ocean Regional Information Sharing & Incident Management Network (IORIS) as a secured communications platform for interagency planning and coordination when responding to incidents.
The maritime exercise scenario included illegal drug trafficking, goods smuggling, human trafficking, and responding to fire at sea.
Aside from the 97-meter multi-role response vessel, BRP Melchora Aquino (MRRV-9702), the PCG also deployed BRP Malapascua (MRRV-4403), BRP Boracay (FPB-2401), and a Coast Guard Aviation Force (CGAF) helicopter to participate in the said inter-agency capacity-building initiative.
The Philippine Navy, the Philippine National Police-Maritime Group, and the Bureau of Quarantine also dispatched their respective assets and personnel.
The Office of the President’s NCWC and the European Union’s Critical Maritime Routes Indo-Pacific (CRIMARIO II) represented by Political Counselor Frederic Grillet of the European Union Delegation in the Philippines, organized the event.
Other participating agencies included the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Command Center, the AFP Intelligence Service, the Bureau of Immigration, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, the Bureau of Customs and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
