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U.S. Navy praises PCG amid historic RIMPAC debut

Vivienne Angeles (VA) · Jul 30, 2026, 3:52 AM

The Philippine Coast Guard vessel BRP Gabriela Silang operates alongside the US Coast Guard Cutter Kimball and the Mexican Navy’s ARM Juárez during a Maritime Interdiction Operations exercise as part of RIMPAC 2026. — PHOTOGRAPH courtesy of PCG

Senior military officials praised the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) on Wednesday following its inaugural participation in Rim of the Pacific, the world’s largest multinational maritime exercise.

US Navy Vice Adm. Jeffrey T. Jablon commended the PCG for its contributions to maritime law enforcement, search and rescue, and humanitarian assistance during RIMPAC 2026, which brought together forces from 30 nations.

“They really brought valuable capability to the exercise,” Jablon said during a virtual news briefing. “Our theme, ‘Partners: Integrated and Prepared,’ isn’t just a theme. It’s exactly what we saw on land, in the air and at sea.”

The Philippines deployed two vessels to the exercise: the coast guard offshore patrol vessel BRP Gabriela Silang and the navy corvette BRP Miguel Malvar.

Jablon cited that the BRP Gabriela Silang integrated seamlessly with partner forces, reflecting the growing role of coast guards in regional security.

RIMPAC 2026 featured more than 500 maritime events designed to strengthen interoperability among participating nations in detecting, tracking, and responding to maritime threats.

The 30th edition of the biennial exercise, hosted by the US Pacific Fleet in Hawaii and Southern California, opened 24 June and concludes Friday.

This year’s exercise featured expanded leadership responsibilities for partner nations. The US led the combined task force, while Japan served as vice commander and headed humanitarian assistance operations.

South Korea directed the maritime component, Chile served as deputy commander, and Canada led air operations.

Rear Adm. Takuo Kobayashi of Japan said the shared command structure demonstrates that no single country can address modern maritime challenges alone.

First held in 1971 with five nations, RIMPAC has expanded significantly as participating countries seek to promote security and stability across the Indo-Pacific. Jablon called the PCG’s debut a major milestone and voiced hope for expanded coast guard involvement in future iterations.