Honoring past service, sacrifice and the bonds they forged

Dear friends,

Falling on the 25th of April each year, ANZAC Day is Australia’s National Day of Commemoration.

It started as a day of remembrance for the soldiers from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) that fought and died at Gallipoli, Türkiye, in 1915. Now, it is much more.

The legend of the ANZACs, forged in Gallipoli, helped shape Australia’s national identity. And the term, ‘ANZAC,’ has become synonymous with the qualities of courage, egalitarianism, endurance and mateship.

Over the last 110 years the significance of ANZAC Day has grown.

Tomorrow, across Australia and around the world, Australians and our friends will attend services and marches to honor those who have served, fought and sacrificed so much for us, to ensure our freedom and our way of life.

We remember all Australians who have sacrificed their lives in our country’s name.

And we remember our partners and friends who stood alongside Australian forces in crisis and conflict.

Australia is proud to call the Philippines one such partner and friend.

Through 79 years of partnership, Australia and the Philippines have developed a strong and enduring bond built on mutual respect, trust, understanding and shared values.

Our historic defense ties date back to the Second World War.

In July 1942, Japanese ‘hell ship,’ the Montevideo Maru, sank off the coast of the Philippines, killing 850 Australian service personnel who were held as prisoners of war.

Australian military involvement in the liberation of the Philippines began in June 1943, when escaped prisoners of war from Sandakan in Sabah joined Filipino guerrillas fighting in Tawi-Tawi.

The Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force and the Australian Army all contributed to the subsequent liberation operations. This included signals intelligence, support for amphibious landings, airfield engineering, naval engagements and aerial photo reconnaissance.

Six years later, Australian and Filipino soldiers fought historic battles to defend South Korea during the 1951 Chinese Spring Offensive.

In 2013, Australia rapidly delivered life-saving medical and logistics support to devasted areas of the Philippines in the wake of Super Typhoon Yolanda.

And in 2017, the ADF delivered intelligence, and undertook surveillance and reconnaissance in support of AFP operations to combat radical Islamists who were terrorizing Marawi City.

Our intertwined defense history also includes operational experience in Vietnam, Timor Leste and Iraq.

Australia and the Philippines have proudly stood side-by-side in times of disaster, crisis and conflict.

Through this, we have formed a truly unique partnership and friendship.

We have trained together to develop our individual and collective capacity to respond to a range of challenges, from terrorism and maritime security threats, to humanitarian disasters.

Our proud and storied defense relationship is at an historic high point.

Our Defense Cooperation Program, which has long been grounded in providing a broad range of professional skills through training and education, is evolving in response to the AFP’s requirements.

At the center of this effort is a focus on maritime security and territorial defense. In an uncertain regional and global environment, our defense cooperation has kept pace by delivering increasingly sophisticated activities, designed to improve our interoperability and our preparedness to respond.

Our two countries held the inaugural Australia-Philippines Defense Ministers’ Meeting in Canberra, on Nov. 12, 2024.

The meeting produced timely engagement on opportunities for Australia and the Philippines to further deepen defense cooperation, including through military exercises, regular Maritime Cooperative Activities and multilateral coordination.

Exercise ALON, our largest bilateral joint exercise, and the ADF’s largest overseas exercise, will return to the Philippines in August 2025. This year’s iteration will see a major advancement in both nations’ ability to conduct complex military operations – together, and with key security partners.

As a key pillar of our Strategic Partnership, our defense cooperation is grounded in a commitment to protect who we are and what we stand for, including our shared vision for a peaceful, stable and prosperous region. We must remain steadfast in our defense of sovereignty, international law and the rules-based order that is the lifeblood for our way of life.

ANZAC Day is an opportunity to reflect on the cost of conflict and the value of peace. And in recognizing Australia’s shared history with the Philippines and championing our shared vision for a peaceful region, this is one small way I can honor the sacrifice of our veterans.

Lest we forget.

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HK Yu is the Australian Ambassador to the Philippines. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @AusAmbPHmailto:@AusAmbPH.