Philippines vows ‘Super Bowl’ of exercises in coming Balikatan military drills with US

Name: Philippines vows major exercises in coming Balikatan military drills with US
Uploaded: 2025-04-15T14:25:48.000Z
Duration: 1 min 24 s
Description: Philippines vows major exercises in coming Balikatan military drills with US

The exercises will feature ‘an interesting mix of equipment’, including the China-opposed Typhon missile system

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Philippine Army Brigadier General Michael Logico (left) and US Marine Corps Colonel Doug Krugman during a press briefing for the Balikatan drills at Camp Aguinaldo in Manila on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Raissa Robles

Published: 10:25pm, 15 Apr 2025Updated: 1:05pm, 16 Apr 2025

The Philippines’ Balikatan, or “shoulder to shoulder”, military drills with the United States this year will be the “Super Bowl” of exercises that will fully test Manila’s defence plan, Army Brigadier General Michael Logico has vowed.

Echoing these sentiments on Tuesday, American counterpart Marine Colonel Doug Krugman said the drills would include “quite an interesting mix of equipment” – including the China-opposed Typhon missile system – to be deployed by the US.

Another weapon freshly brought in by the US for the drills, which will start on April 21 and run until May 9, is the NMESIS anti-ship missile system, with Krugman hinting it could remain in the Philippines after the Balikatan.

The Typhon, or the Strategic Mid-Range Fires System, which can launch Tomahawks capable of reaching China and Russia, will continue to be deployed in an unknown location in the Philippines.

As to whether a second such system would be installed, both officers would only give vague answers.

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Philippines vows major exercises in coming Balikatan military drills with US

Asked by This Week in Asia whether the NMESIS could also stay on after the drills, Krugman said: “If there’s another exercise going in the Philippines shortly after Balikatan, and that equipment is appropriate and requested for by the AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines], we would certainly want to participate in that exercise as well, but it is here for exercise purposes.”