Australia to provide surveillance drones to Philippines amid South China Sea tensions

By JIM GOMEZ
Associated Press

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong says her country will provide surveillance drones and other high-tech gear to the Philippine coast guard and is considering whether to take part in joint patrols in the disputed South China Sea. Wong, who held talks in Manila with her counterpart, Enrique Manalo, also thanked the Philippines for its help in the discovery of a ship that sank during World War II in the northern Philippines, killing nearly a thousand Australians. The United States and the Philippines, which are longtime treaty allies, have been holding talks on proposed joint naval patrols in the South China Sea, where China has fortified its vast territorial claims by transforming disputed reefs into missile-protected island bases.