Australia has initiated its largest joint military exercises with the Philippines, involving over 3,600 troops in live-fire drills, battle maneuvers, and a beach assault at a Philippine town facing the contested South China Sea. The area has raised concerns due to Beijing’s increasingly assertive actions.
The drills, named “Alon” (meaning “wave” in Filipino), aim to demonstrate Australia’s military capabilities. The exercises will feature a guided-missile navy destroyer, F/A-18 supersonic fighter jets, C-130 troop and cargo aircraft, Javelin anti-tank systems, and special forces sniper weapons.
Defense officials said that forces from the United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, and Indonesia will participate as observers.
Vice Admiral Justin Jones of the Royal Australian Navy stated, “This exercise reflects Australia’s commitment to working with partners to ensure state sovereignty is protected, international law is upheld, and nations can make decisions free from coercion.”
Jones added that the drills provide “an opportunity to practice collaboration in responding to shared security challenges and projecting force across long distances in the Indo-Pacific.”
