Balikatan 2025: Expanded drills, advanced missiles, wider global support
Metro Manila, Philippines – Amid rising tensions in the South China Sea, the Philippines and the United States are set to begin their largest-ever joint military exercise, Balikatan 2025, from April 21 to May 9.
The 40th iteration of the annual drills will bring together over 14,000 troops, including 9,000 U.S. soldiers and 5,000 from the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), in what officials describe as a more complex, technologically advanced, and globally supported version of the longstanding defense exercise.
Strategic location, strategic timing
Balikatan 2025 will unfold across key areas in northern Luzon and Palawan — regions in close proximity to both Taiwan and the West Philippine Sea. These locations are considered flashpoints in the ongoing maritime disputes with China.
By conducting joint operations near these contested zones, Manila and Washington are sending a clear signal of deterrence and readiness. The exercise reaffirms their mutual commitments under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty.
Firepower on Philippine soil: Typhon and NMESIS debut
A defining feature of this year’s drills is the deployment of the Typhon missile system, also known as the Mid-Range Capability (MRC) platform. Capable of launching both SM-6 and Tomahawk missiles, Typhon provides long-range strike options that directly address anti-access and area-denial threats.
Coupled with the NMESIS (Naval Strike Missile System), these platforms introduce a layered, mobile, and land-based missile capability from Philippine territory. The deployment marks a strategic shift in U.S. force posture and adds a new dimension to regional defense planning.
Armed Forces Chief General Romeo Brawner said Balikatan 2025 will feature a "full battle test", an unprecedented training approach that combines field-level drills, command post exercises, and virtual simulations.
U.S. Colonel Doug Krugman described it as a live rehearsal for joint warfighting, emphasizing the importance of readiness across land, sea, air, space, and cyber domains.
Key events include:
+ Destruction of a decommissioned vessel at sea
+ Amphibious landing and counter-landing drills
+ Integrated air and missile defense
+ Logistical coordination and terrain recapture scenarios
These high-level training activities also support the AFP’s Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept, designed to modernize the Philippine military and enhance its ability to respond to a range of threats, including gray-zone operations and natural disasters.
Growing coalition: Allies and observers
This year’s Balikatan reflects expanding multilateral participation. Beyond the US and the Philippines, Australia and Japan will send active combat troops, while 19 other nations — including Canada, Germany, the UK, the Czech Republic, South Korea, and Colombia — will participate as official observers.
“The International Observer Program enhances transparency and cooperation with allies and partners, strengthening regional solidarity,” said AFP Public Affairs Chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad.
The AFP emphasized that Balikatan is more than a bilateral exercise, it is an emerging platform for regional security cooperation aligned with broader Indo-Pacific goals of collective defense and deterrence.
