MANILA, March 28 (Reuters) - The Philippines and the United States kicked off on Monday their biggest joint military drills since 2015, underscoring improved defence ties after President Rodrigo Duterte had scaled back some earlier war games to pursue warmer ties with China.
The annual “Balikatan” exercises involve 8,900 troops this year and will include live fire exercises and training with amphibious assault vehicles.
But last year he withdrew a threat to scrap a two-decade old pact governing the presence of U.S. troops in the Southeast Asian country. Live fire exercises returned in 2018 and 2019 but the scale of the drills remained smaller and in 2020 they were cancelled due to the pandemic, while onlyU.S. exercise director, Major General Jay Bargeron, said the latest drills, which are designed to improve the country’s defensive capabilities and readiness to respond to crises, should not be seen as a show of force.
Despite efforts to build closer ties, the Philippines has become more critical of Beijing’s actions, including what it calls “swarming” by fishing vessels manned by militia off the disputed Spratly islands, and a blockade of a military resupply mission last year.
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