Japan, the United States, Australia and the Philippines said Saturday they will conduct their first full-scale joint naval exercises in the South China Sea, in an apparent show of unity against China's maritime assertiveness.The Maritime Cooperative Activity will be held in the Philippines' exclusive economic zone on Sunday to demonstrate the "collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific," the four countries' defense ministers said in a joint statement.Since holding the first meeting of their defense chiefs in June las…READ FULL ARTICLE
