'Indian Navy is the only one with...': Philippines envoy to UK praises India's maritime muscle after Indo-Pacific joint drills
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'Indian Navy is the only one with...': Philippines envoy to UK praises India's maritime muscle after Indo-Pacific joint drills")
The Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr with Indian PM Narendra Modi during his recent state visit Photograph: (File)
The Filipino politician and lawyer-journalist was responding to a discussion on X about the recent India-Philippines exercises not too far away from the South China Sea.
The Philippines' envoy to the UK has said that the Indian Navy is the only one that 'goes where it pleases', expressing his admiration after the two nations recently conducted joint exercises not too far away from the South China Sea, where his country is engaged in frequent tussles with the Chinese Navy.
"The Indian Navy is the only one with the balls to go where it pleases; Western navies sing a cappella like castrati," wrote Teodoro "Teddy Boy" Lopez Locsin Jr, who was a former foreign minister of the Philippines, on X. Castrati is a reference to male singers who were castrated before puberty to preserve their high vocal range for singing, mainly in church choirs and opera houses.
The Filipino politician and lawyer-journalist was responding to a discussion on X about the recent India-Philippines exercises.
The India-Philippines joint navy drills
Ahead of a state visit to India by the Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, the two navies held the joint drill in the West Philippine Sea in the Indo-Pacific. One analyst described it as 'waters that fall within the broader South China Sea and are claimed by China.' Correcting the analyst, an X user wrote: "It is not China's maritime backyard. The exercise took place inside Philippines EEZ [Exclusive Economic Zone]. It's thousands of kilometres away from Chinese mainland."
Teodoro "Teddy Boy" Lopez Locsin Jr's response came while commenting on that post.
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The India-Philippines patrol in the region are not new, with the navies having held such joint drills in the West Philippine Sea in 2021 as well.
Giving some context to the latest drills, another X user joined the conversation, agreeing that the Philippine EEZ is not China’s “maritime backyard'.
"India’s presence challenges that narrative without needing QUAD cover. Locsin’s praise signals interest in deeper defence links with India. For Delhi, this is both a DIPLOMATIC lever and a signalling opportunity to show it can project power far from home waters. But repetition matters more than a one-off exercise," the X user with the handle 'Normal Guy' wrote.
"Western navies’ caution comes from alliance politics and escalation management with China. India’s freer hand gives tactical room, but sustaining credibility means building logistics support in Southeast Asia and keeping deployments regular, not reactive," wrote the user.
'Your turn will come: PM Modi's recent praise for Indian Navy after Operation Sindoor
According to recent reports, the Indian Navy was on the verge of action during Operation Sindoor, the Indian military's response to Pahalgam terror attacks orchestrated from Pakistan, when a sudden ceasefire was announced.
Meeting the chiefs of Indian forces, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the Navy chief on May 10, “I have snatched the morsel out of your mouth, but your turn will come.”
He was speaking after the Indian Navy was told to stand down from launching a BrahMos missile attack on Karachi port, according to a recent report in the Hindustan Times newspaper.
