Philippines, U.S. launch military drills amid South China Sea tensions

MANILA, April 12 (Reuters) - Philippine and U.S. soldiers
started two weeks of military exercises on Monday against a
backdrop of rising tensions in the South China Sea, though the
drills were reduced in scale due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The countries are proceeding with the exercises, which were
postponed last year due to the pandemic, after Manila recently
accused China of territorial incursions by hundreds of its
vessels manned by militias in the South China Sea. Chinese diplomats, however, have said the boats were just
sheltering from rough seas and no militia were aboard.
Philippine military officials said the "Balikatan"
(shoulder-to-shoulder) war games that end on April 23 will
involve drills in tabletop and simulation form rather than field
training.
Social distancing protocols significantly cut the number of
troops participating to nearly a thousand from close to 8,000 in
previous years.
All ground exercises were cancelled except for live fire
exercises which do not entail face-to-face engagement, Major
General Edgard Arevalo, the exercise director, said in a speech.
In a speech read by his undersecretary, Philippine Defence
Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the joint drills would
"strengthen our capabilities in addressing traditional and
non-traditional security challenges amidst the increasingly
complex situation in the region."
Lorenzana and his U.S.counterpart Lloyd Austin held a phone
call on Sunday to discuss the exercises, the situation in the
South China Sea, and recent regional security developments.
The defence chiefs also reiterated the importance of the
Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the two countries,
which provides the legal framework under which U.S. troops can
operate on a rotational basis in the Philippines.
Philippine President Rorigo Duterte has said the United
States should pay more if it wants to maintain the VFA, which he
unilaterally cancelled last year in an angry response to an ally
being denied a U.S. visa.
The withdrawal period has been twice extended, however, to
create what Philippine officials say is a window for better
terms to be agreed.