The Philippine Navy said that on Friday, its ships were conducting drills near an disputed shoal in South China Sea. This comes a day after Manila agreed with Beijing to find common ground and ways to work together despite the ongoing disputes.

In a press release, the navy stated that the exercise was conducted to enhance the navy's ability to protect Philippine waters as well as the territorial integrity of the country.

It called it a "routine unilateral operation" that involved its Antonio Luna Frigate and two other patrol vessels operating in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines. It said that the exercises would be held from January 17-19.

The drills coincided the Philippine Coast Guard's continued radio challenges to China's largest coastal guard vessel which, it claims, is illegally patrolling Manila's EEZ.

The coast guard stated that "if China is truly committed to deescalating the tensions, and sincerely wants to foster mutual trust between our nations...the Chinese government should respect the Philippines' sovereignty rights in our EEZ" in a late Thursday statement.

The Chinese embassy in Manila failed to respond immediately Friday when asked for a comment.

China's territorial claims along the main maritime trade route overlap the EEZs Brunei Indonesia Malaysia the Philippines and Vietnam.

China rejects a 2016 decision of an arbitral tribunal that Beijing's claims based on historical maps are not backed by international law.

China and the Philippines agreed to intensify communication and dialogue during the 10th round of bilateral talks held on Thursday under the South China Sea Mechanism. However, they also called eachother out for recent standoffs.

They committed to peacefully resolve issues while also advancing the coast guard and scientific cooperation. (Reporting and editing by Karen Lema)

(source: Reuters)