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Agence France-Presse

The Philippine armed forces will hold joint exercises with hundreds of US soldiers over the next two weeks, its military chief said on Sunday, amid growing tensions with Beijing in the South China Sea.
The annual war games between the military allies were cancelled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
This year’s “Balikatan” (Shoulder-to-Shoulder) drills to test the readiness of their militaries to respond to threats such natural disasters and militant extremist attacks will be scaled down, said Philippine military chief Lieutenant General Cirilito Sobejana. 
About 700 US soldiers and up to 1,300 members of the Philippine military will take part – about a quarter of the usual attendance, Sobejana said.
China-Philippines Whitsun Reef dispute could get worse as US chips in
“The exercise this year is a hybrid of virtual and physical activities,” he said.
“It’s a low-key exercise, just to keep the alliance – the contact – between the two armed forces.”
The US embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The announcement came hours after a phone call between US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Philippine counterpart Delfin Lorenzana, who last week tested positive for the coronavirus.
They “discussed the situation in the South China Sea, and the recent massing of People’s Republic of China maritime militia vessels at Whitsun Reef”, according to a readout provided by the Pentagon.
To deepen their defence cooperation, Austin proposed “enhancing situational awareness of threats in the South China Sea”. The readout did not elaborate.
As South China Sea row deepens, is Duterte losing his ‘love’ for Beijing?
Tensions over the resource-rich sea have intensified since hundreds of Chinese vessels were detected last month at Whitsun Reef, which is in the Spratly Islands where several countries, including China and the Philippines, have rival claims.
China, which claims almost the entirety of the sea, has refused repeated appeals by the Philippines to withdraw the vessels, which Manila says unlawfully entered its exclusive economic zone.
Beijing said previously they were fishing vessels sheltering from bad weather.


The United States reminded China last week of Washington’s treaty obligations to the Philippines in the event of an attack in the waters.
“An armed attack against the Philippines’ armed forces, public vessels or aircraft in the Pacific, including in the South China Sea, will trigger our obligations under the US-Philippines Mutual defence Treaty,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
The resumption of joint military drills comes more than a year after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte – who has pivoted towards China since taking power in 2016 – gave notice that he planned to axe the Visiting Forces Agreement.
US-China relations: military tensions continue to rise over Taiwan
The plan to break the deal – central to hundreds of joint military exercises with the US every year and a major component of their nearly 70-year-old alliance – has been suspended.
But it has underscored the complicated relations between the Philippines and its former colonial master, the United States.
Duterte’s stance also raised concern that the regional balance of power could tilt in Beijing’s favour.
Many Filipinos don’t make it into hospital at all amid Covid-19 surge
Lorenzana also sought the assistance of Austin in speeding up the delivery of doses of the Covid-19 vaccine developed by US pharmaceutical and biotechnology company Moderna that the Philippines has ordered.
Austin “would look into the issue and bring it to the attention of the office concerned”, the statement said.
Additional reporting by Reuters



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The Philippines

Philippines, US to start two-week joint military drills amid South China Sea tensions

An Amphibious Assault Vehicle (AAV) moves next to the USS Wasp multipurpose amphibious assault ship during the 2019 Philippines-US Balikatan exercise. Photo: EPA-EFE

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Chinese vessels near the Whitsun Reef in the disputed South China Sea. Photo: AP

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Chinese fishing vessels moored at Whitsun Reef in the South China Sea. Photo: Philippine Coast Guard/National Task Force-West Philippine Sea via AP

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The USS Makin Island entered the South China Sea late on Wednesday. Photo: Twitter

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Chinese vessels anchored at Whitsun Reef. Photo: National Task Force-West Philippine Sea / AFP

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has cultivated close ties with China since he came to power in 2016. Photo: Reuters 

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A protester is surrounded by police officers during a rally against joint military drills between South Korea and the US in Seoul on Saturday. Photo: EPA-EFE

News

Asia

Southeast Asia


The annual ‘Balikatan’ drills come as the Philippines protests against the presence of the Chinese vessels at Whitsun Reef in the Spratly Islands
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Philippine counterpart Delfin Lorenzana on Sunday discussed the issue, as well as the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA)



The annual ‘Balikatan’ drills come as the Philippines protests against the presence of the Chinese vessels at Whitsun Reef in the Spratly Islands.


South China Sea

China-Philippines relations

United States