00:00Thousands of American and Philippine troops joined for the first time by a significant contingent of Japanese forces began annual
00:09military exercises Monday set against the backdrop of the Middle East War.
00:15The war games will feature live fire exercises in the north of the country facing the Taiwan Strait, as well
00:21as a province of the disputed South China Sea, where the Philippines and China have engaged in repeated confrontations.
00:30The Japanese military, which is contributing 1,400 personnel, will use a Type 88 cruise missile to sink a target
00:37ship off northern Pawai, Philippine exercise spokesman Colonel Dennis Hernandez said.
00:42More than 17,000 soldiers, airmen, and sailors are taking part in the 19-day Balikatan or shoulder-to-shoulder
00:50exercises about the same number as last year's edition, including contingents from Australia, New Zealand, France, and Canada.
00:57U.S. exercise spokesman Colonel Robert Bunn said ahead of Monday's opening ceremony that the Balikatan exercises represent an opportunity
01:06to showcase the ironclad alliance with the Philippines and demonstrate a commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.
01:14Bunn added that U.S. troop levels, which he described as one of the largest deployments in years, would be
01:21unaffected by the ongoing war in the Middle East while declining to provide specific numbers.
01:27Naritha Raja, FMT.
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