India and the Philippines announced an upgraded strategic partnership that they say will deepen trade, defense and maritime cooperation.

India and the Philippines are friends by choice and partners by destiny, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday as the two countries elevated their ties to the level of strategic partnership, with a greater thrust on increasing interaction among the armed forces.

India and the Philippines have staged joint naval exercises in the disputed South China Sea for the first time, antagonizing China.

India and the Philippines jointly patrolled areas of the disputed South China Sea for the first time, staging a high-profile naval exercise in waters over which China claims it has sovereign rights.

A foreign ministry official of India has said that New Delhi’s stance on the South China Sea territorial dispute is based on Unclos.