LOOK: Philippine Navy ship docks in Vietnam after Asean-US exercise

BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS-16) (Photo from Philippine Navy)

MANILA, Philippines — After joining the inaugural Asean-US joint maritime exercises in the Gulf of Thailand last week, the Philippine Navy’s BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS-16) docked in Vietnam for a four-day port visit.

This marked the third goodwill visit of the Philippines to Vietnam after the bilateral ties of the two countries have been established, Naval Task Group 80.5 public affairs officer Lt. Ryan Luna said in a statement Tuesday.

“Series of confidence-building engagements between the Philippine Navy and VPN (Vietnam People’s Navy) personnel were conducted such as shipboard tour, reception, and friendly games,” he said.

The Philippine delegation led by NTG 80.5 commander Capt. Hilarion Cesista paid a courtesy call on VPN’s deputy commander Capt. Dinh Van Thang.

The visit, which started Saturday, wrapped up on Tuesday morning. The ship is heading back to the Philippines, as of this posting.

Before the Vietnam port call, BRP Ramon Alcaraz joined member-states of the Asean and the United States for a five-day joint maritime exercise, the first of its kind in the region.

“The Philippine Navy had achieved its goal in this exercise. We were able to enhance our maritime operational capability to multilateral level thereby increasing our readiness and interoperability while engaging our partner navies,” Cesista said. /kga

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