US, Philippines launch drills with 5,000 soldiers
MANILA: Soldiers from the Philippine and the US armies began three weeks of joint military exercises on Monday, with drills focused on territorial defence and commanding large-scale deployments of forces, the Philippine Army said. Around 5,000 soldiers from the Philippine Army and the US Army Pacific will take part in warfighting and exchange of expertise in the first phase of this year's Exercise Salaknib. A second phase is scheduled for later this year.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to travel to Manila this week to meet Philippine leaders and forces, the Pentagon announced last week. The exercises will focus on enhancing combined operations between their army, large-scale manoeuvres, live-fire exercises and territorial defence, the Philippine Army said.
The Salaknib exercises began in 2016 and are annual engagements between the two treaty allies, part of the broader Balikatan (shoulder-to-shoulder) training drills. Security engagements between the two nations have soared under Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who has pivoted closer to the United States. Hegseth is the first Cabinet official to visit Manila since US President Donald Trump took office in January. — Reuters
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