Philippines and U.S. forces will sink a target ship, retake an island and sail in waters facing the South China Sea in joint military drills that will start next week against the backdrop of maritime tensions with Beijing.
The exercises will "demonstrate our combat-readiness and showcase U.S. and Philippines armed forces’ interoperability,” Colonel Michael Logico, who’s one of the organizers, told foreign correspondents in Manila on Wednesday.
Key drills will be held in Philippine areas near Taiwan and South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing are embroiled in an increasingly tense territorial dispute. Logico said the exercises are not directed at China.