US and Philippines launch joint army drills with 5,000 soldiers

24/3/2025 18:58

Soldiers from the Philippine and the U.S. armies began three weeks of joint military exercises on Monday, with drills focused on territorial defence and commanding large-scale deployments of forces, the Philippine Army said.



Around 5,000 soldiers from the Philippine Army and the U.S. Army Pacific will take part in warfighting and exchange of expertise in the first phase of this year's Exercise Salaknib. A second phase is scheduled for later this year.



U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to travel to Manila this week to meet Philippine leaders and forces, the Pentagon announced last week.



The exercises will focus on enhancing combined operations between their army, large-scale manoeuvres, live-fire exercises and territorial defence, the Philippine Army said in a statement.