Philippine Exercise Director Francisco Lorenzo, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Chief of Staff Romeo Brawner, U.S. Charge d’ Affaires Robert Ewing, AFP Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations Major General Elmer B Suderio, and I Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) Commanding General and U.S. Marine Corps Lieutenant General Christian Wortman, pose for a photo during the opening ceremony of the Balikatan joint military exercises, at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. | Photo Credit: Reuters The United States and the Philippines kicked off one of their largest combat exercises on Monday (April 20, 2026) in an annual display of allied military might aimed at deterring aggression in Asia, despite Washington’s preoccupation with the war in West Asia. The large-scale combat drills between the U.S. and Philippines will expand this year to include other militaries, including from Japan, France and Canada, which have signed visiting forces agreements with Manila, the Philippine military said. Published – April 20, 2026 01:05 pm IST Share this: Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email More Click to print (Opens in new window) Print Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon Click to share on Nextdoor (Opens in new window) Nextdoor Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky Like this:Like Loading... Post navigation T.N. election: Sengottaiyan challenges Palaniswami to a public debate Basaveshwara’s thoughts offer an ethical path to an equal society: Shankar Devanoor