Consolidating to Face China, Philippine and US Military Hold Annual War Games

MANILA – Nearly 17,000 troops Filipina and America began three weeks of joint combat exercises in the Philippines on Monday (22/4/2024) that include maritime drills in the South China Sea where Manila and Beijing are at odds over territorial claims.

France and Australia, which have stepped up defense ties with Manila in the face of China’s aggressive behavior in the South China Sea, will join in maritime drills that will be held for the first time outside Philippine territorial waters.

The annual Balikatan or shoulder-to-shoulder drills, which will take place from April 22 to May 10, come amid escalating diplomatic spats and maritime encounters between the Philippines and China, including the use of water cannons and heated verbal exchanges.

Officials said the drills were not aimed at any external aggressor, but would increase interoperability between their militaries.

“Exercises at these locations are carried out in accordance with international order and international law and in accordance with your sovereign rights and responsibilities. “We are conducting a normal exercise,” US Lieutenant General William Jurney, Balikatan training director, said in a briefing, reported by Reuters.

Beijing’s increasing pressure in the South China Sea has worried Manila, claimants to the disputed sea area, and other countries operating there, including the United States which has reaffirmed its commitment to defend the Philippines from armed aggression in the South China Sea.

China claims most of the South China Sea, through which it carries more than $3 trillion in annual shipping trade. Beijing criticized the joint drills, saying they exacerbate tensions and undermine regional stability.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in 2016 that Beijing’s sweeping claims to the sea had no basis under international law. China rejects the decision and has built military facilities on disputed coral islands to support its claims.

During the joint exercise, US forces and their counterparts in Manila will simulate the recapture of enemy-occupied islands on the country’s northernmost islands close to Taiwan, and in western Palawan province facing the South China Sea.

The exercise will involve around 16,700 troops from both sides, slightly less than last year’s 17,600 troops, which was the largest Balikatan exercise since it began in 1991.

(ahm)