Manila, Sept. 26 -- The Philippines is among the countries set to get a portion of the United States' new USD55 million or approximately PHP3.2 billion funding on maritime security in the region, the US Department of State said Thursday.

The new allocation is aimed at helping enhance the maritime law enforcement capacity of countries in the Indo-Pacific, including the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Pacific Islands, and still unnamed "maritime South Asian nations."

The State Department said the funding will enable the beneficiary states to "counter illicit maritime activities, exercise their sovereign rights, and interdict illicit fishing and maritime trafficking operations."

The new funding was announced during the US-c...