Philippine and United States troops, supported by Australian surveillance aircraft, launched artillery, rockets, missiles and bombs to sink a mock enemy ship off the Philippines’ main island of Luzon, the culmination of the largest-ever Balikatan military exercise.
More than 16,000 Philippine and U.S. military personnel participated in the Philippines-based drills for three weeks in late April and early May 2024. The exercise also included participation of Australian and French forces, as well as 14 observer nations: Brunei, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, the United Kingdom and Vietnam.
The sinking of the 99-meter decommissioned Philippine Navy oil tanker off the coast of Laoag City in Ilocos Norte tested combined fire networks and simulated response to an invading force.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., whose home province is Ilocos Norte, watched the drills from a command center. Balikatan 24 focused on Philippine territories facing the South China Sea and self-governed Taiwan, where tensions have heightened due to the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) increasing assertiveness.
The training emphasized interoperability and aimed to bolster the Philippines’ defenses.
IMAGE CREDIT: STAFF SGT. ASA BINGHAM/U.S. ARMY
“We are not provoking anybody by simply exercising,” said Col. Michael Logico, a Philippine spokesperson for Balikatan. “This is actually a form of deterrence,” he added. “Deterrence is when we are discouraging other parties from invading us.”
U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Pacific Commander Lt. Gen. William Jurney, an exercise director, said Balikatan demonstrated that the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty between the Philippines and U.S. was “no mere piece of paper.” The agreement commits the allies to defending each other in case of aggression by an external force.
Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., the Philippines’ military chief, said the drills showcased the alliance as “not a partnership of convenience but rather a clear reflection of our shared history, unwavering commitment to democracy, and respect for international law in our pursuit of peace and security in the Indo-Pacific region.”
The PRC claims most of the South China Sea as its territory, contrary to an international tribunal’s ruling in 2016, and has repeatedly harassed Philippine ships on resupply missions to maritime outposts. PRC coast guard vessels increasingly have rammed, blocked and fired water cannons at Philippine boats, injuring Philippine mariners and damaging vessels.
IMAGE CREDIT: SPC. BENJAMIN ANDERSON/U.S. ARMY
Don McLain Gill, a lecturer at the Department of International Studies at De La Salle University in Manila, said cooperation is vital for the Philippines. “Given our geography, limited resources, but acute challenge from an expansionist power at sea, it is crucial for us to work with like-minded partners with an aim of improving our resilience and maritime security capabilities on the one hand, and keeping the West Philippine Sea free, open and rules-based on the other,” Gill told FORUM.
Filipinos refer to the portion of the South China Sea within Manila’s exclusive economic zone as the West Philippine Sea.
Balikatan featured joint naval drills beyond the 12 nautical miles (about 22 kilometers) of the Philippines’ territorial waters, challenging the PRC’s expansive maritime claims.
While Balikatan was underway, defense chiefs from Australia, Japan, the Philippines and the U.S. met in Hawaii, vowing to deepen cooperation amid the PRC’s increasing assertiveness. Ahead of Balikatan, the four nations held their first joint naval exercises in the South China Sea.
IMAGE CREDIT: STAFF SGT. TIFFANY BANKS/U.S. ARMY
U.S. President Joe Biden has said Washington’s commitment to the Philippines is ironclad and warned that an armed attack against Philippine military vessels would trigger mutual defense provisions.
Gill highlighted the need for preparation amid growing pressure. “Clearly, the past months have witnessed rising tensions in the South China Sea and cross-strait relations due to Beijing’s assertive and expansionist ambitions,” he said, referring to the Taiwan Strait that separates the democratically governed island from the PRC. “Therefore, given the large stakes of the U.S. and the Philippines in the stability of the South China Sea and Taiwan, it is imperative for both countries to prepare and explore contingencies in case of any potential hot conflict in these areas.”
In other Balikatan drills, troops secured the country’s northern and western coasts, demonstrating their ability to conduct complex littoral and coastal defense operations. In Palawan, facing the South China Sea, the combined forces conducted live-fire drills and rapid infiltration of High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), a capability known as HI-RAIN.
“Through seamless coordination and cooperation, we are successfully executing complex multimodal transportation operations, rapidly deploying long-range fires capabilities to support the territorial defense of the Philippines,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Benjamin Blane, commander of the 1st Multi-Domain Task Force’s 1st Long Range Fires Battalion.
In Batanes and Northern Luzon provinces, which face the strategic Bashi Channel and the southern tip of Taiwan, joint forces led by the U.S. Marine Littoral Regiment conducted maritime key terrain security operations (MKTSO) along with HIMARS and HI-RAIN drills. The Philippines’ northernmost islands — Batan, Itbayat and Mavulis — served as primary training sites for MKTSO, while the Lal-lo airfield and Port of Irene in Cagayan province served as training sites for HIMARS and HI-RAIN missions.
Lal-lo is accessible to U.S. troops under the allies’ Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). “The strategic importance of Lal-lo airport to support defensive operations in the Luzon Strait cannot be overstated,” Logico said. “The aviation support system and the combined force established there are central to our ability to simulate defensive operations across distributed maritime key terrain.”
The U.S. 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit’s amphibious combat vehicles (ACV) deployed overseas for the first time for a live-fire, waterborne gunnery range exercise in Oyster Bay, Palawan. ACVs launched from the U.S. Navy amphibious landing ship USS Harpers Ferry to engage shore-based targets using remote-controlled, externally mounted 40 mm grenade machine guns. The exercise validated the employment, embarkation, maintenance requirements, logistics and integration of ACVs with Allies and Partners.
The Philippines in 2023 granted the U.S. military access to four additional sites under the EDCA, including strategic locations facing Taiwan and the South China Sea. The Philippines and the U.S. also began joint patrols in the South China Sea in 2023.
IMAGE CREDIT: CAPT. JORDAN BALZANO/U.S. ARMY
Along with field training exercises, troops participating in Balikatan conducted civic assistance missions such as building schools and medical centers.
The multilateral exercise’s next iteration in 2025 is expected to involve a “full-scale battle simulation” with “the most realistic of scenarios possible,” Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said at the Balikatan 24 closing ceremony.
Maria T. Reyes is a FORUM contributor reporting from Manila, Philippines.
