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By Rex Anthony Naval
UTURE wars are won not on the battlefield but at the table of the planners and strategists working hard to ensure that their Armed Forces have the necessary tactical doctrines in meeting, containing and, if necessary, eliminating hostile military formations that would dare invade or attack their country. For this reason, battle plans need to be complex to ensure that would-be opponents would have a difficult task in deciphering their tactical moves in whatever frontline scenarios that may arise should a full-blooded shooting war ever erupt. And despite its benign name, “Balikatan” (which literally means shoulder-to-shoulder), the annual exercise between composite Filipino and American military units, is still focused on operating seamlessly with each other and efficiently neutralizing threats from the land, air and sea. Aside from this, “Balikatan” is now also geared to handle and contain threats coming in from cyberspace, which is now considered to be the new battleground in modern warfare. As the drills are still ongoing, there are still no concrete details on the particular exercises conducted by the participants, except for those that were completed earlier. Around 11,000 American troops and their support personnel, and 5,000 Filipino soldiers have been tapped to participate in the “Balikatan” exercise, which will run from April 22 to May 10. A total of 14 nations have deployed military observers to watch the exercises unfold in the land, sea, air and even in cyberspace.
‘Balikatan’ an evolving military maneuver
ARMED Forces of the Philippines (AFP) spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said “Balikatan” is constantly evolving to ensure that the Philippines, the United States and other participants maintain their edge in meeting present and future security threats. “[The] ‘Balikatan’ exercise is distinctive due to its scale and evolving nature, adapting to contemporary security challenges. Every ‘Balikatan’ is [more] complex than the last,” she stressed. And through the years, “Balikatan” has evolved into being just a mere “tactical exercise” to being comparable to large-scale maneuvers or what are called “operational levels of war.”
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‘BALIKATAN’: TRAINING FOR FUTURE, COMPLEX CONFLICTS
“We aim to enhance interoperability, strengthen alliances and deepen regional security cooperation. ‘Balikatan’ is a demonstration of combat readiness and interoperability with our treaty allies. Our focus remains on bolstering external defense capabilities and fostering peace and stability in the IndoPacific Region,” Padilla stressed. Regardless of what some groups believe, the AFP spokesperson clarified that “Balikatan” is not a reaction to the country’s ongoing tensions with China regarding the West Philippine Sea. “This ‘Balikatan’ exercise is an annual event aimed at strengthening defense capabilities and alliances. While we remain vigilant in the face of regional challenges, the exercise is not explicitly tied to any particular country’s actions. Its primary objective is to enhance collective security and readiness among participating nations,” Padilla stressed.
Inaugural IWX held
HIGHLIGHTING Balikatan’s evolving thrust, the AFP and its US counterparts held the first Information Warfighter Exercise (IWX) from April 1 to 5 at AFP headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City. Considered as a Balikatan pre-event, the weeklong exercise strengthened interoperability between AFP and US information operations (IO) planners, and empowered the Filipino military personnel with enhanced IO capabilities. This also set the standard for future local IO training programs. Key law-enforcement agencies such as the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Coast Guard actively engaged in the exercise, emphasizing its comprehensive scope and significance in strengthening national defense strategies. The brainchild of the US Marine Corps Information Operations Center in Quantico, Virginia, the IWX stands at the forefront of innovative IO training methodologies. “Employing a matrix-style wargame framework, the exercise equipped participants with the requisite skills to strategize and execute operations within the
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Donovon Munn, a native of California and an infantry rifleman with 3rd Littoral Combat Team, 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, and a Philippine Marine with Marine Battalion Landing Team 10, clear a room during urban operations training at Paredes Air Station, Philippines, April 27, 2024. Balikatan 24 is an annual exercise between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the US military designed to strengthen bilateral interoperability, capabilities, trust and cooperation built over decades of shared experiences. US MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY CPL. ERIC HUYNH VIA DVIDSHUB.NET
complexities of the contemporary information environment,” explained AFP public affairs office chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad. This marked the first instance where the IWX has been hosted outside the United States. “Its integration into the ‘Balikatan Exercise’ 39-2024 not only underscored the unwavering commitment of both nations to collaborative defense efforts, but also served as a significant milestone in the enduring partnership between the Philippines and the US,” Trinidad said.
‘Balikatan’ to highlight AFP shift to defend EEZ PHILIPPINE Marines and their counterparts from the United States Marine Corps conducted an air assault exercise on Balabac Island, Palawan, on April 26, 2024, as part of the Balikatan exercise. Utilizing the USMC CH53E Super Stallion, the air assault exercise involved the insertion of troops via helicopters into a designated zone, simulating a rapid deployment scenario. This exercise demonstrates the combined capabilities of the Philippine and US Marines in conducting complex military operations. AFP PIO, TACTICAL OPERATIONS WING WEST AND TACP BALABAC, TACTICAL OPERATIONS GROUP 7
AS this developed, the ongoing Balikatan will highlight the AFP’s ongoing shift towards the so-called Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept (CADC) that aims to defend the country’s territories intensively, including its exclusive
economic zone (EEZ). Col. Michale Logico, Balikatan 2024 executive agent, said this means that the country’s defense concepts need to go beyond the 12-nautical-mile limit for this to be achieved. Logico added that the objective of the Balikatan exercise is to ensure that both Filipino and American troops understand each other’s doctrines and capabilities. “In plain language, we are developing our capability to protect and secure our entire territory and EEZ in order to ensure that our people and all the generations of Filipinos to come shall freely reap and enjoy the bounties of the natural resources that are rightfully ours within our domain,” Defense Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro Jr. said of the CADC.
First-ever MME
THIS shift was highlighted by the
just concluded multilateral maritime exercise (MME), which is also a first for Balikatan. This event took place from April 25 to 29 in Palawan waters. This was done successfully and safely despite the presence of four People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ships snooping in the training area. “The first iteration of the MME between the AFP, the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USIndopacom), and the French Navy concluded on April 29, 2024, in Palawan, marking a historic milestone in regional cooperation and security,” Combined Informations Bureau chief Lt. Col. John Paul Salgado said. He added that the week-long exercise saw active participation from the Philippine Navy’s offshore patrol vessel BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PS-16) and landing dock BRP Davao Del Sur (LD-602), the US Na-
vy’s landing ship dock USS Harpers Ferry (LSD-49), and the French Navy’s FS Vendémiaire (FFH-734), a Floreal-class frigate. The five-day exercise culminated in a series of impressive demonstrations, including a photo exercise showcasing their professionalism and coordination in a simulated formation sailing scenario, and documenting operations through proper photographic techniques for military purposes. Participating naval vessels also performed surface gun exercises which tested the participating navies’ live-fire capabilities and communication skills under challenging environments. “The first-ever MME provided the participating countries the knowledge and expertise which will be used to propel their naval forces to even greater capabilities. As the newest and one of the key Continued on A2
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 57.5840 n JAPAN 0.3746 n UK 72.1931 n HK 7.3694 n CHINA 7.9701 n SINGAPORE 42.5194 n AUSTRALIA 37.7981 n EU 61.7646 n KOREA 0.0422 n SAUDI ARABIA 15.3537 Source: BSP (May 3, 2024)