The Japan Coast Guard (JCG) dispatched two members of its Mobile Cooperation Team (MCT), a special team that provides foreign coast guard agencies with capacity building on maritime safety and security, to the Philippines from 21 Nov (Tue.) to 25 Nov (Sat.) 2023, in cooperation with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). MCT collaborated with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) as part of SAPPHIRE to provide technical assistance to the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).

From 21 to 25 Nov 2023, at the PCG base in La Union City, Republic of the Philippines, the JCG-MCT, in cooperation with the USCG and JCG, conducted a "Suppression Training" at the "Boarding Officer Course" with instructors from the PCG and the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) who were invited by USCG.

The JCG will continue to strengthen cooperation with foreign coast guard agencies to realize a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP)" based on the rule of law, and will also engage actively to provide technical assistance of coast guard agencies in the Indo-Pacific region.

US-Japan joint engagements are referred to as SAPPHIRE*, and those to be implemented in 2023 are described as SAPPHIRE23.

*SAPPHIRE: Solid Alliance for Peace and Prosperity with Humanity and Integrity on the Rule of law-based Engagement

　　
　　　　Explanation of training outline　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Instructor briefing

　　
　　　　Escort techniques instruction　　　　　　　　　　　Arresting techniques instruction


　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Group photo