LIGHT MOMENT. Members of the contingents of the Philippine Navy and Mexican Navy pose for a photo opportunity during a cross-decking activity aboard the Mexican Navy's missile frigate ARM Juarez on July 7, 2022. The activity held on the sidelines of the ongoing RIMPAC 2022 in Hawaii enabled the Philippine contingent to showcase a taste of Filipino cuisine to its foreign counterparts. (Photo courtesy of Philippine Navy)
MANILA – The Philippine Navy (PN) and Mexican Navy (Armada de México) contingents to the ongoing Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in Hawaii conducted a cross-decking activity last July 7.
In a statement Monday, PN spokesperson Commander Benjo Negranza said the Mexican contingent which visited the BRP Antonio Luna (FF-151) was headed by the commanding officer of missile frigate ARM Juarez (F-101), Capt. Alberto Ortega Padilla.
"They (were) welcomed by the commanding officer of BRP Antonio Luna and the commander of the Naval Task Group 80.5, Captain Charles Merric Villanueva, together with other officers aboard the ship. The Mexican Navy officers were given a ship's tour during the visit," he added.
Meanwhile, Negranza said Filipino cuisine took center stage during the cross-deck activity aboard the ARM Juarez.
The PN contingent's mess team headed by Ensign Janrey Artus prepared Filipino dishes such as chicken-pork adobo, laing, and yema cake as dessert.
"These dishes were presented to the commanding officer and the crew aboard ARM Juarez. This activity on the sidelines of the ongoing RIMPAC 2022 in Hawaii enabled the Philippine contingent to showcase a taste of our cuisine to foreign Navy counterparts. It was also an opportunity to observe their best practices in terms of food preparation aboard ship while in-port and underway," Negranza said.
This year's RIMPAC is scheduled from June 29 to August 4.
Considered the world's largest maritime exercise, it is held biennially to promote regional stability in the Pacific Region.
Around 25,000 personnel from 26 participating nations are part of the 28th iteration of RIMPAC activities which was first conducted in 1971.
The PN's participation in RIMPAC 2022, themed “Capable, Adaptive, Partners,” will be the third after its maiden participation in 2018 and its sophomore run in 2020. In the 2018 RIMPAC, the Navy deployed the offshore patrol vessel, BRP Andres Bonifacio (PS-17), and the landing dock BRP Davao Del Sur (LD-602). In the 2020 iteration of the maritime exercise, the PN sent the country's first missile frigate, the BRP Jose Rizal (FF-150).
Both the BRP Jose Rizal and BRP Antonio Luna are capable of anti-air warfare, anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare, and electronic warfare operations.
As this developed, the BRP Antonio Luna was also visited by counterparts from the Royal Malaysian Navy and Indian Navy from July 6 to 7.
Villanueva welcomed his counterpart Capt. Saket Khanna of India’s INS Satpura, and Commander Mohammad Asri Bin Dasman of Malaysia’s KD Lekir.
The visitors were accorded a tour around the PN's Jose Rizal-class frigate and exchanged mementos and plaques, a gesture aimed at sustaining good relations with partner navies. (PNA)
