Philippine, US, and Australian forces join for 35th Balikatan training exercise

A training exercise known as Balikatan is underway in the Philippines this week, assembling forces from the Philippines, United States and Australia to address a multi-faceted range of operations.

Balikatan, which marks the partnership between the Philippines and United States specifically, is the 35th gathering of its kind. Through April 12, participating forces will cover everything from counterterrorism training, to a host of other activities such as amphibious operations, live-fire training, urban operations training, aviation operations, bilateral planning, subject matter expert exchanges, and humanitarian and civic assistance projects in the region.

“The 35th iteration of Exercise Balikatan is aimed at improving both AFP and US Forces’ interoperability through trainings that are focused on mutual defense operations and counterterrorism. The goal of such is to enhance both militaries’ employment of forces and assistance in the event of crises that threaten the safety and security of the nation,” Lt. Gen. Gilbert Gapay, Philippines exercise director, said.

The focus of the operations stresses three things commonalities: readiness, responsiveness, and enhanced multi-military relations. While the focus is on U.S. and Philippine collaboration, the Australian Defence Force is participating in the humanitarian and civic assistance side of things, as well as in special operations forces training.