Overview
- U.S., Philippine and Australian forces moved HIMARS rocket launchers and Marine anti-ship systems onto Itbayat in the Batanes during April 23–25 to prove rapid long-range strike deployment on remote islands.
- From April 26–29, troops linked U.S. MADIS and Avenger, Japan’s Type 11, and the Philippine SPYDER into one sensor-to-shooter network at Naval Station Leovigildo Gantioqui, with counter-drone systems like VAMPIRE and FS-LIDS in the mix.
- In Palawan on Monday, about 500 personnel from the Philippines, United States, Australia and New Zealand repelled a mock amphibious landing with HIMARS, mortars, Javelin and TOW missiles, and a first-person-view explosive drone.
- China’s Southern Theater Command showcased a destroyer-led task group east of Luzon and highlighted movements by the carrier Liaoning and a Type 075 amphibious ship as counter-exercise activity during the drills.
- Running April 20 to May 8 with roughly 17,000 troops from seven nations, this year’s Balikatan emphasizes tech-driven littoral defense, including small reconnaissance and strike drones and palletized counter-drone kits designed for dispersed island operations.