Philippines, US to Stage Major Joint Military Drills Amid South China Sea Tensions

The Philippines and the United States, treaty allies, are set to deploy approximately 14,000 troops in joint annual military exercises against a backdrop of simmering tensions with Beijing in the South China Sea, Bloomberg reports.

The annual war games, dubbed Balikatan (a Filipino word meaning “shoulder-to-shoulder”), will be held from April 21 to May 9, focusing on enhancing interoperability and readiness in response to potential threats.

This year’s exercises will feature a mobile coastal anti-ship missile system for the first time, according to Philippine Brigadier General and drill director Michael Logico. Philippine and US forces will also aim to sink a target ship and retake an island, mirroring drills conducted last year.

The drills will take place in Philippine areas near Taiwan and the South China Sea, a critical waterway for global trade that has become a flashpoint for regional tensions in recent years.

Approximately 9,000 US troops and 5,000 Filipino counterparts will participate in Balikatan 2024. Australia will send troops, while Japan, the Czech Republic, and Poland, among others, will observe the exercises, Logico said.

The exercises come after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reaffirmed Washington’s “ironclad” commitment to the mutual defense treaty with the Philippines during a visit last month. Hegseth also pledged to deploy additional advanced capabilities to the Southeast Asian nation in response to perceived threats from China.

Philippine and Chinese vessels have clashed on several occasions in the contested waters over the past year as Manila asserts its claims in the region.