Balikatan Exercises Begin

U.S. and Philippine forces opened Balikatan 41-2026 on Monday, launching three weeks of joint drills across the Philippine archipelago. (gmanetwork.com) The exercise runs from April 20 to May 8 and brings together more than 17,000 personnel from the Philippines, the United States, Australia, Japan, Canada, France, and New Zealand. An additional 17 countries are joining as observers. (pacom.mil) Philippine and U.S. officers said this year’s training spans land, sea, air, cyber, and space operations, with scenarios built around compressed decision-making and coordination between allied forces. Philippine military briefers said the drills include airspace deconfliction and multinational mission planning. (pna.gov.ph) The 2026 exercise coincides with the 75th anniversary of the U.S.-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty, the alliance signed in 1951 that commits both countries to help meet armed attacks in the Pacific. U.S. officials said the drills are meant to show that treaty remains active even as Washington is also focused on the Middle East. (imef.marines.mil, gmanetwork.com) The backdrop is a sharper security contest in the South China Sea, where Philippine and Chinese ships have repeatedly faced off near disputed features over the past two years. Balikatan has shifted with that tension, moving from disaster-response and counterterrorism drills toward coastal defense and combined combat training. (rappler.com) Japanese forces are taking part in a larger way this year, and Rappler reported it is the first time Japanese combat personnel are expected to train on Philippine soil since World War II. That adds another U.S. ally to a drill that Manila and Washington have steadily widened. (rappler.com) Philippine officials have described Balikatan 2026 as the biggest edition so far and said it reflects a move toward “joint all-domain operations,” meaning forces train to fight and communicate across several arenas at once instead of in separate services. The opening ceremony was held at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City. (mb.com.ph, gmanetwork.com) U.S. military officials said the exercise is “not aimed” at China and is focused on alliance readiness and the mutual defense treaty. Protest groups in Manila marked the opening day with demonstrations against the drills. (pna.gov.ph, reutersconnect.com) For the next 19 days, Balikatan will test whether seven participating militaries can plan, move, and operate together on short notice from Luzon to the central Philippines. The answer will shape how far Manila and Washington can push a broader coalition around the alliance in 2026. (pacom.mil, pna.gov.ph)