Manila, Philippines - US and Filipino forces on Wednesday sank a decommissioned China-made ship, owned by the Philippines' navy during ongoing South China Sea war games.

The BRP Lake Caliraya, a small tanker decommissioned by the Philippines Navy in 2020, slowly dipped below the water after being struck by waves of anti-ship missiles, rockets, cannon fire and land-based artillery.

The exercises are being held near the city of Laoag, about 250 miles south of Taiwan, amid a backdrop of increased confrontations between Manila and Beijing in the region, which last week saw water canons fired on the Philippines' coast guard by Chinese forces.

Specifically, the sinking of a Chinese-made ship was meant to simulate an attack on an enemy vessel. It is presumed that the war games currently underway are meant as preparation for a potential future war with China.

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A navy fast attack craft and frigate, an air force fighter and helicopter and land-based artillery from the Filipino military, as well as a US F-16 fighter and an AC-130 gunship, took part in the attack on the simulated enemy vessel.

Lieutenant-Colonel Omar Al Assaf, lead Philippine planner for Wednesday's exercises, told reporters that the participants had "a mission of trying to prevent an aggressor from landing on the Philippine soil."

"The ability of both the US and the Filipino army and air force to work together to achieve this is extremely lethal," said Lieutenant-Colonel Matt Cahill, commander of a US Army unit taking part in the war games.

Asked by Bloomberg reporters in his regular press conference on May 7, China's foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said: "No military drill should target or harm the interests of any third party, nor should it undermine the trust between countries and affect peace and stability in the region."

"Relevant countries need to stop infringement and provocations at sea, stop stoking confrontation, and contribute to peace and stability in this region, rather than resort to the 'method of spiritual victory' in a self-comforting move."

The Filipino military made a point of ruling out any symbolism in the choice of a China-made ship as target practice, with Navy chief vice admiral Toribio Adaci insisting: "There is no issue with that. The vessel has been used in the Philippines for a long, long time."

"China has repeatedly made its position clear on US-Philippines military cooperation," Lin Jian told AFP on Monday. "Countries in the region are clear-eyed about who is stoking military confrontation and ratcheting up tensions in this part of the world."