By Liz Lagniton | 2026-05-19

Philippine defense officials have said future iterations of the annual Balikatan military exercises could expand beyond the West Philippine Sea and involve broader regional operations with allied forces following this year's large-scale drills with the United States, Japan and other partner nations.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said planners were studying the possibility of holding more activities in other parts of the country, including along the eastern seaboard.

"What we tested now is still limited," Teodoro said after the closing ceremony at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City on May 8, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. He added that future drills could broaden in scope without necessarily becoming larger.

This year's Balikatan involved more than 17,000 troops from the Philippines, the United States and allied countries, making it the biggest iteration of the exercises so far. Japan fully participated for the first time following the ratification of the Reciprocal Access Agreement between Manila and Tokyo.

Missile capabilities

Philippine and U.S. military officials pointed to the growing sophistication of the exercises, which this year included the first live-fire deployment in the Philippines of the U.S. Typhon missile system and Japan's Type 88 surface-to-ship missile.

Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said the drills reflected Manila's efforts to modernize its military and train personnel on advanced weapon systems increasingly important in modern warfare.

"We want to train our personnel in all the modern weapons that we can get our hands on," Brawner said, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The military is studying the possible acquisition of additional missile systems after conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East highlighted the growing role of missiles, drones and air defense capabilities, he added.

"We believe that we have to develop our own capabilities so that we can defend the archipelago by ourselves," he said.

Allied coordination

Japan's expanded role reflects a broader effort among regional allies to improve military interoperability in response to shared security concerns, said Brawner.

"It's important that we train with them in terms of military tactics and strategies because we are looking at addressing threats in the region not as individual countries, but as a collective group," he said.

Military officials highlighted the Combined Coordination Center, or "Triple C," at Camp Aguinaldo as part of efforts to improve coordination among allied forces. Adm. Samuel Paparo, commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, said the facility had been years in the making.

"We've been working on this for five years. It's a reality," Paparo said, according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

The exercises unfolded as tensions grow between China and several Southeast Asian countries over disputed waters in the South China Sea.

China's Foreign Ministry said the missile exercises threatened regional peace and stability, while Teodoro sharply criticized Beijing after it objected to Japan's participation in the drills.

"What are they doing in the West Philippine Sea and in other places?" Teodoro said, accusing China of coercive actions against neighboring countries including Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.

"It is surprising coming from China, which is a dictatorship and whose military suppresses its own people," he added.

Against that backdrop, Philippine and allied commanders framed Balikatan as a test of faster multinational coordination.

The military aims to eventually connect the Combined Coordination Center with command hubs in Japan, Australia and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command headquarters to improve coordination during joint operations, said Brawner. Military leaders from the Philippines, the United States, Japan and Australia were scheduled to discuss proposals for conducting future Balikatan activities beyond Philippine territory.