Philippine and U.S. troops will hold a wide-range set of joint drills next month in flashpoint locations that could be strategically vital in potential conflict with China.
The Balikatan exercises, to be held from April 11-28, are believed to the largest edition of the joint drills ever held between the two longtime allies, and come as the Biden administration has been trying to roll back moves in recent years by Manila to move closer to Beijing.local press outlets that the drills will include some 12,000 American troops, some 5,500 local soldiers and around 100 Australians. Observers from Japan’s Self Defense Forces will also be present.
Asked if the drills might irk China, Philippine Col. Michael Logico responded, “Every country has the absolute and inalienable right to exercise within our territory. We have the absolute, inalienable right to defend our territory.” The Chinese-occupied Spratlys are claimed by multiple nations, including Taiwan and the Philippines. Manila won a sweeping legal victory over China at an arbitration tribunal established under the U.N. Convention of the Law of the Sea that rejected Beijing’s aggressive territorial claims.
One leading analyst said the ability to deploy American forces on Philippine soil in a crisis with China in either the South China Sea or over Taiwan is critical for Pentagon planners. Wednesday’s announcement of drills forms part of a wider trend: the rejuvenation of the Manila-Washington alliance under President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos. Mr. Marcos took power in 2022, replacing the populist and often anti-U.S. President Rodrigo Duterte, and has taken several steps to re-balance his country’s relations with China and the U.S.
He did not explicitly single out China, but added pointedly, “We still have to fight for the rights of every Filipino because the Philippines is a sovereign nation and the Philippines has a functioning government.”
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