The US and Philippines may hold bigger military drills this year, according to the Southeast Asian nation’s army chief, as tensions with China grow.
(Bloomberg) — The US and Philippines may hold bigger military drills this year, according to the Southeast Asian nation’s army chief, as tensions with China grow.
“It is claimed that this will be a bigger exercise than the past year’s Balikatan exercise, with the involvement of more troops,” Philippine Army Commanding General Romeo Brawner Jr. told reporters Wednesday, when asked about the size of this year’s bilateral armed forces exercises with the US.
The military exercise that’s scheduled in the second quarter “isn’t just focused” on war drills but also on humanitarian assistance and disaster response, Brawner said. Last year, more than 8,000 Filipino and American armed forces joined the drills, he said.
Tensions are increasing between China and the Philippines after the Southeast Asian nation’s coast guard said a Chinese ship aimed a military-grade laser to a Philippine vessel in the South China sea on Feb. 6., prompting President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to summon Beijing’s ambassador.
The drills aren’t necessarily directed at “geopolitical threats” rather are “in response to all types of threats that we may be facing in the future both man-made and natural,” Brawner said.
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