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International Relations April 20, 2026 5 min read Daily brief · #20 of 39

US Opens Record Drills With Philippines as Iran War Rattles Allies

The 41st edition of Exercise Balikatan — the annual joint military exercise between the United States and the Philippines — commenced on April 20, 2026, as t...

GS Paper 2

What Happened

  • The 41st edition of Exercise Balikatan — the annual joint military exercise between the United States and the Philippines — commenced on April 20, 2026, as the largest in the series to date.
  • Over 17,000 troops from the Philippines, the United States, and partner nations including Australia, Canada, France, Japan, and New Zealand are participating, with at least 18 more countries serving as observers.
  • The exercise, running from April 20 to May 8, covers multiple domains: air and missile defense, maritime security, live-fire drills, and joint readiness operations, conducted across the Philippine archipelago from Luzon to Mindanao.
  • Balikatan 2026 has been restructured from a bilateral US-Philippines format into a multilateral format aimed at improving interoperability and collective defense capabilities among Indo-Pacific partners.
  • Japan's contingent of approximately 1,400 personnel is the largest Tokyo has deployed to Balikatan to date, reflecting its deepening security engagement in the region following its own defence posture shift.
  • The exercises are being conducted against the backdrop of ongoing US-Iran conflict and continued China-Philippines tensions over the South China Sea, particularly around contested reefs and Second Thomas Shoal.

Static Topic Bridges

US-Philippines Alliance: Treaty Framework

The United States and the Philippines maintain one of the oldest formal security alliances in Asia, anchored in a series of bilateral agreements that have been progressively strengthened since the 2010s.

  • The Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) was signed on August 30, 1951 in Washington, D.C. — it commits both parties to treat an armed attack on either as a threat to both and to act in concert to meet the common danger.
  • The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA, 1998) provides the legal framework for the status and protections of US military personnel in the Philippines on official duties.
  • The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA, signed April 28, 2014) allows rotating US military presence at designated Philippine military facilities without establishing permanent US bases; it prohibits nuclear weapons on Philippine soil.
  • As of 2023, EDCA has been expanded from 5 to 9 Philippine military facility locations accessible to US forces.
  • In 2023, updated bilateral defense guidelines clarified that an armed attack on either party's "armed forces, aircraft, or public vessels — including coast guard — anywhere in the South China Sea" triggers MDT mutual defense commitments.

Connection to this news: Balikatan 2026 is conducted under the MDT-VFA-EDCA framework; its expansion in scale and multilateral character reflects the broadened scope of the alliance's mutual defense commitments in the South China Sea.

South China Sea Disputes and Indo-Pacific Security

The South China Sea is one of the world's most strategically contested maritime spaces, carrying an estimated USD 3–5 trillion in annual trade. China claims approximately 90% of the sea under its "nine-dash line" — a claim rejected by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in a landmark 2016 ruling (Philippines v. China). The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan all have overlapping claims.

  • The 2016 PCA arbitral award (under UNCLOS Annex VII) found China's nine-dash line claim to have no legal basis; China has refused to recognise the ruling.
  • Second Thomas Shoal (Ayungin Shoal) has been a persistent flashpoint: the Philippines has maintained the BRP Sierra Madre — a deliberately grounded navy vessel — there since 1999 as a territorial marker; Chinese coast guard and maritime militia have repeatedly obstructed Philippine resupply missions.
  • Freedom of navigation operations (FONOPs) by the US Navy in the South China Sea are conducted under the premise of exercising rights recognised under UNCLOS.
  • The Philippines is the only country with a specific US mutual defense treaty covering South China Sea contingencies explicitly.

Connection to this news: Balikatan 2026 includes maritime and live-fire drills in locations close to regional flashpoints, directly signalling deterrence capacity in South China Sea dispute scenarios.

Exercise Balikatan — Background and Evolution

"Balikatan" is Tagalog for "shoulder to shoulder." The annual joint exercise began in 1981 as a relatively modest bilateral training event and has grown into one of Asia's largest multilateral defense exercises. Its evolution mirrors the shifting security environment in the Indo-Pacific.

  • Balikatan was suspended from 1995 to 1999 following disputes over the VFA, then resumed after Philippine ratification of the VFA in 1999.
  • The exercises have progressively incorporated live-fire anti-ship drills, cyber defense scenarios, and humanitarian assistance components alongside conventional combat training.
  • The 2026 edition for the first time includes simulated BrahMos missile firing (India-Russia joint cruise missile system now also in Philippine service), reflecting Manila's diversification of defense partnerships.
  • Japan's participation in Balikatan 2026 — including deployment of Type-88 anti-ship missile systems — is notably its most operationally assertive contribution, aligned with Tokyo's new defence export and alliance policies.

Connection to this news: The 2026 exercise is a direct response to simultaneous pressures: South China Sea assertiveness by China, the strategic uncertainty generated by the US-Iran conflict, and the need to demonstrate credible collective defense capabilities to deter aggression across the Indo-Pacific.

Key Facts & Data

  • Exercise name: Balikatan — Tagalog for "shoulder to shoulder"
  • 2026 edition: 41st Balikatan, April 20 – May 8, 2026
  • Troops participating: 17,000+ from Philippines, USA, Australia, Canada, France, Japan, New Zealand
  • Observer nations: at least 18 countries
  • Japan's contribution: approximately 1,400 troops — largest to date for Balikatan
  • Key agreements underpinning exercise: MDT (1951), VFA (1998), EDCA (2014)
  • EDCA facilities: 9 Philippine military locations accessible to US forces (as of 2023)
  • Second Thomas Shoal: key South China Sea flashpoint, site of ongoing China-Philippines standoffs
  • 2016 PCA Arbitral Award: rejected China's nine-dash line claim under UNCLOS
  • Annual South China Sea trade value: approximately USD 3–5 trillion
  • BrahMos simulated firing: featured in Balikatan 2026 for first time
On this page
  1. What Happened
  2. Static Topic Bridges
  3. US-Philippines Alliance: Treaty Framework
  4. South China Sea Disputes and Indo-Pacific Security
  5. Exercise Balikatan — Background and Evolution
  6. Key Facts & Data
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