Historically, the USCG and JCG have taken a long voyage in the same boat since JCG was established in 1948. Since then, both coast guards have enhanced their cooperative engagements and signed a memorandum of cooperation to boost the strong relationship in 2010. Based upon this MOC, they have conducted a high-level bilateral meeting annually to share information and to affirm common interests.
The world is now facing a paradigm shift in the economic and security realms, such as COVID-19’s impact on human activities and unilateral attempts to change the rules-based international order by force in the East China Sea and South China Sea. Both sides, under these circumstances, began to recognize the need to modify the MOC to be more practical and concrete in order to carry out joint operations to maintain and develop a Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP).
On the 18th of May 2022, the two Vice admirals formally signed additional Annexes of the MOC to expand cooperative engagements in order to enable both sides to conduct a joint operation called SAPPHIRE. “SAPPHIRE” is an acronym for “Solid Alliance for Peace and Prosperity with Humanity and Integrity on the Rule of Law based Engagement” and is regarded as a “precious gem that is an emblem of integrity and affection found throughout the Indo-Pacific” region. The additional Annexes consists essentially of three parts, (combined operations, personnel exchange, and capacity building support for foreign coast guards) which embodied the core elements of the MOC in 2010.
In the part regarding combined operations, they agreed upon a mechanism of combined operations and exercises to respond appropriately to contingencies such as cases of maritime distress and other regional natural disasters. The combined exercises are expected to reinforce mutual understanding through shared principles, tactics, techniques and procedures to cope with all manner of contingencies or future operation. They have already conducted a combined search and rescue exercise off the coast of San Francisco on the 20th of May, and also coped with actual maritime distress during a combined counter-narcotics exercise off the coast of Guam on the 7th of June based on the annex.
