U.S. Army Green Berets and Australian commandos conduct free-fall training as a part of the Balikatan military exercise on April 10, 2023. (Spc. Lee Gaozong/U.S. Army)
A U.S. soldier in sniper camouflage takes position at an static display of equipment during a U.S.-Philippines military exercise at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija province, north of Manila, on April 13, 2023. (Ted Aljibe/AFP via Getty Images)
A U.S. Marine drives a Joint Light Tactical Vehicle off of an Army landing craft mechanized in preparation for the Balikatan drills at Camp Agnew in Casiguran, Philippines, on April 8, 2023. (Staff Sgt. Danny Gonzalez/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. soldiers walk during a brief drizzle at the joint military exercise between the U.S. and Philippines called Balikatan at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija province, northern Philippines, on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. troops take part in a live-fire exercise as part of U.S.-Philippines drills on March 31, 2023, at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Philippines. Philippine and U.S. troops held live-fire exercises as part of the annual drills called Salaknib, which involved more than 3,000 troops, and are in preparation for the largest-ever joint military drills called Balikatan the following month. (Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
A Javelin anti-tank missile hits a target during a joint military exercise between the U.S. and Philippines on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
Demonstrators burn a U.S. flag during a rally in front of Camp Aguinaldo military headquarters in Quezon City, Philippines, on April 11, 2023, as they protest against opening ceremonies for the joint military exercise Balikatan, or Tagalog for shoulder-to-shoulder. The U.S. and the Philippines began their largest combat exercises in decades that will involve live-fire drills, including a boat-sinking rocket assault in waters across the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. (Gerard Carreon/AP)
A Filipino soldier is seen through the barrel of a Carl Gustaf recoilless anti-tank rifle during Balikatan on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
US and Philippine troops operate a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System during live-fire exercises on March 31, 2023 in Laur, Nueva Ecija, Philippines. (Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
U.S. and Philippine troops take part in weapons training during the Balikatan exercise on April 13, 2023. More than 17,000 Philippine and U.S. soldiers started their largest joint military exercise yet, known as Balikatan. (Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Alyssa McKee, an air traffic control communications technician, conducts a radio check as part of a combat readiness evaluation during Balikatan at the Subic Bay International Airport in the Philippines on April 10, 2023. (Cpl. Kyle Chan/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. and Philippine troops fire a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System on March 31, 2023, in Laur, Nueva Ecija, Philippines. (Ezra Acayan/Getty Images)
U.S. Gen. Charles Flynn, left, who leads U.S. Army Pacific, shakes hands with Philippine Army Lt. Gen. Romeo Brawner during the joint military exercise Balikatan on April 13, 2023. This year's Balikatan exercises between the treaty allies are the largest since the two sides started joint military combat-readiness exercises in the early 1990s. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. soldiers talk during the Balikatan exercise at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija province, northern Philippines, on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. Lance Cpl. Alexander Bennett launches a Javelin anti-tank missile during Balikatan on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. soldiers carry a Javelin shoulder-launched anti-tank missile past a U.S. M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System in the northern Philippines on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
A Filipino soldier launches a Javelin anti-tank missile at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija province, northern Philippines, on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
A Filipino soldier carries a Javelin anti-tank missile during a joint military exercise between the U.S. and the Philippines. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Brandon Meyer sets up a satellite communication antenna as part as a combat-readiness evaluation during Balikatan at the Subic Bay International Airport in the Philippines on April 10, 2023. (Cpl. Kyle Chan/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. Marines prepare to refuel am MQ-9A Reaper drone with the California Air National Guard during the Balikatan exercise at the Subic Bay International Airport in the Philippines on April 7, 2023. (Cpl. Kyle Chan/U.S. Marine Corps)
U.S. soldiers practice during a military exercise at Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija province, northern Philippines, on April 13, 2023. (Aaron Favila/AP)
U.S. Marines set up radar equipment as part as a combat-readiness evaluation during Balikatan on April 10, 2023. (Cpl. Kyle Chan/U.S. Marine Corps)
FORT MAGSAYSAY, Philippines — U.S. and Filipino forces have blasted vehicles with anti-tank missiles in combat-readiness drills in the Philippines that are part of a show of American firepower that has alarmed China.
The treaty allies are holding their largest joint military exercises called Balikatan — or shoulder-to-shoulder — in decades. They involve 17,600 military personnel and will feature live-fire maneuvers, including a ship-sinking rocket attack and beach assaults to simulate retaking an island near the disputed South China Sea.
Last month, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the Philippine military’s focus is shifting from decades of battling communist and Muslim insurgents to external defense to ensure the protection of the country’s territory as disputes with China in the South China Sea persist.
Joeal Calupitan and Aaron Favila with The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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