Politics
12:25, 07-May-2018
Philippines, US conduct annual military exercises
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The 34th Balikatan exercises between the Philippine and US militaries opened on Monday morning, which is focus on training their interoperability skills in fighting terrorism and disaster response.
The annual exercises called Balikatan or "Shoulder-to-Shoulder", slated for May 7 to 18, opened with ceremonies at the Armed Forces of the Philippines headquarters in Quezon City.
About 8,000 troops from the two countries, along with soldiers from Australia and Japan, are participating in the training events this year,
With the increasing concerns over terrorism after the five-month fighting in Marawi last year, this year’s Balikatan exercises have seen an increasing number of the participants.
In 2017, around 2,800 Filipino soldiers, 2,600 Americans and 80 members of the Australian Defense Forces and 20 from the Japan Self Defense Force participated in the series of military drills.
2852km