US Special Forces Expand Drills in Philippines and Asia as 80,000-Strong Command Targets China Deterrence
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 14
US Special Forces Expand Drills in Philippines and Asia as 80,000-Strong Command Targets China Deterrence
3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 14
Summary
Adm. Frank Bradley said U.S. special operations forces are prepared to intensify warfighting-readiness drills with the Philippines and other Asian partners, with exercises in the Philippines already continuing and potentially expanding.
The push is aimed at deterring China’s increasingly hostile actions in the South China Sea through stronger alliances, more regular joint combat training and support for the Philippine military’s modernization.
Batanes — a Philippine island province near Taiwan — remains a key site for joint special forces training, though Bradley gave no details on troop numbers or specific maneuvers.
Bradley’s Manila stop, after South Korea and before Japan, extends a broader U.S. reassurance campaign to Asian allies as Washington balances regional commitments with its preoccupation with the war in Iran.
The effort builds on larger U.S.-Philippine exercises that now include Japan, Australia, Canada and France, underscoring a widening security network around the South China Sea.