Philippines to host US military drills after Duterte softens stance
The Philippines and the United States have scheduled military drills next month in the Southeast Asian nation, the US embassy in Manila said, days after President Rodrigo Duterte acknowledged that his country did need American troops in the South China Sea.
About 1,400 US servicemen based in Okinawa, Japan, and 500 Philippine Armed Forces personnel will conduct an amphibious-landing exercise and live-fire training in multiple locations on the main island of Luzon and in Palawan, according to a statement on the embassy’s on Saturday. The drills, aimed at making troops better prepared to operate together during a natural disaster or armed conflict, are set for October 4-12.
“Exchanging expertise and cultivating our longstanding security alliance provides a cornerstone for security and stability in the region, and has for decades,” Brigadier General John Jansen, Commanding General, 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade, said in the statement.