Overview
- Indian Naval Ships Sahyadri and Kulish arrived at Subic Bay, which took place Monday, to join the ADMM‑Plus Joint Cooperation Activity and its operational sea phase.
- The JCA is a multilateral programme that brings together the 10 ASEAN members and eight partner countries for sea drills, tabletop exercises and seminars to build naval interoperability.
- Indian officials say the exercises will focus on maritime security, counter‑terrorism, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, military medicine, humanitarian mine action and cybersecurity.
- The Defence Ministry framed the visit as a confidence‑building step that deepens the India–Philippines Strategic Partnership formed in August 2025 and follows recent leader‑level talks between Narendra Modi and Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
- Beyond immediate training, the deployment aims to improve practical cooperation for regional disaster response and joint operations while signalling New Delhi’s wider strategy to expand maritime engagement with Southeast Asia.