Thousands of United
States and Philippine
troops kicked off joint
military exercises Monday
against the backdrop of a
standoff in the South
China Sea, between the
Philippines and China.
U.S. military officials say at
4,500 this is the largest
number of American
troops who will
participate in annual war
games with the Philippine
military. They are joining
2,300 Filipino troops. In
speeches during the
opening ceremonies of the
two-week event, called
”balikatan” or shoulder-
to-shoulder in Filipino,
officials from both
countries reaffirmed their
commitment to upholding
their mutual defense
partnership.
Chief of Staff of the Armed
Forces of the Philippines,
Jesse Dellosa, said while
the partnership has helped
with the country’s
response to internal
threats, there still remains
a ”shadow of doubt” in
the country’s ability to
handle certain
international issues - a
reference to the territorial
dispute with China.
”Given the international
situation we are in, I say
that this exercise, in
connection with all those
that we have had in the
past, is a timely and
mutually beneficial event
for us and our U.S.
counterparts,” he said.
Last week, the Philippine
Navy discovered at least
eight Chinese fishing
vessels near Scarborough
Shoal, which Manila says is
well within its exclusive
economic zone. Officials
say the boats held
endangered marine
resources such as giant
clams and live sharks and
they tried to make arrests
and confiscate the
contraband.
But Chinese government
ships intervened, going
between the warship and
the fishing boats. After
days of diplomatic talks
that hit a stalemate, the
fishing vessels left with
their cargo intact, and a
Philippine Coast Guard
ship was left facing the
two Chinese surveillance
vessels.
The Philippines, China,
Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia
and Brunei all have
competing claims in the
South China Sea. China
claims nearly the entire
sea based on a historical
map. The Philippines says
the shoal is part of its
territory based on the UN
Convention on the Law of
the Sea, which designates
a country’s exclusive
economic zone as 370
kilometers from its
coastline.
The contested sea
straddles some of the
world’s busiest sea lanes,
has abundant fishing
waters and is a potential
source of vast oil and
natural gas reserves.
Some of the joint exercises
this year are taking place
on Palawan, an island
province that sits on the
South China Sea. A U.S.
military spokesman says
one of the drills involves
the retaking of a
Philippine oil rig at the
hands of terrorists in the
South China Sea.
Although China has
consistently expressed
displeasure over the
waters being an exercise
site, U.S. and Philippine
officials say the war
games are aimed at crisis
planning for humanitarian
assistance and disaster
relief. Philippine Army
spokesman Major
Emmanuel Garcia says
there is no cause for
alarm.
”No country in the Pacific
or anywhere in the world
should be concerned
about the exercise
because this exercise is
not directed toward any
nation," said Garcia. "This
exercise is purely for the
[uplifting] of the skills of
both the Philippine and
U.S. soldiers in responding
to disasters whether
manmade or natural.”
On Sunday the deputy
presidential spokeswoman
said that the joint
exercises are not a show
of force against China.
Spokeswoman Abigail
Valte says the standoff is
to be resolved through
diplomatic means.

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