Seven Nations Participate in Balikatan 2026 Military Exercise in Philippines

CLARK, Philippines — Exercise Balikatan 2026, the 41st iteration of the series, is underway in the Philippines from April 20 to May 8, featuring troops from seven countries: the Philippines, United States, Australia, Canada, France, Japan and New Zealand.

Defense News reported that Australia, Canada, France, Japan and New Zealand have boots on the ground in Balikatan for the first time. The exercise includes two distinct counter-landing, live-fire exercises and maritime key terrain seizure operations in far-flung islands in the Luzon Strait south of Taiwan.

U.S. military rehearsed rapidly moving HIMARS rocket launchers and NMESIS anti-ship missile systems to remote islands during the drill. S. Army Gen. S. , Philippine and Japanese soldiers during a visit to Fort Magsaysay, Philippines, on April 30, 2026, as part of the exercise.

Clark attended the Balikatan exercise series as a young 25th Infantry Division company commander in 1994, describing the 2026 iteration as a full-circle event. “In the big scheme of things, our highest duty is to deter,” Clark stated. “For those of us that have served in conflict and served in combat, that’s really what it’s about – deterring war.

” Clark stated that Balikatan is an opportunity to train in a way simulating tasks performed together in combat at the invitation of the Philippine government on their sovereign soil. He added that Balikatan has changed focus from counterinsurgency and counterterrorism to large-scale combat operations and territorial defense.

“It’s the willingness of the partner to train on the task that they think that they’re going to have to perform in crisis and conflict,” Clark stated.

“Everything we can do to build the trust that’s necessary, in times where we’re able to train together prior to any kind of crisis or conflict, is golden,” Clark stated. S. Army Pacific conducts 50-plus exercises annually under its Operation Pathways umbrella.

Clark stated that Operation Pathways changes the mindset for operationally deploying forces in the theater and sets conditions with partners, allies and the joint force for rehearsals on key terrain inside the First and Second Island Chains. S. Army Pacific, is Hawaii-based.

The division is fielding new equipment including M7 rifles, M250 machine guns, drones and Infantry Squad Vehicles. The 25th Infantry Division is the Army’s only infantry division to possess HIMARS, Clark stated. He added that Transformation in Contact brings industry alongside and gives them direct feedback from soldiers.

The 25th Infantry Division and 4th Infantry Division are piloting next-generation command-and-control suites, Clark stated. “What you’re seeing is the Army’s most lethal and technologically advanced mobile infantry formation,” he stated.

U.S. Army Pacific, Clark stated. Multi-Domain Command Pacific will be the 7th Infantry Division, set to be activated at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in June 2026. Marines did not bring an air wing to Balikatan 2026, relying upon the Army’s 25th Combat Aviation Brigade, Clark stated.

“What we’re going to try to do is bring the best of both of our capabilities to assist the joint force in the process of solving hard problems,” he stated. “What we’re trying to do over the course of time is to continue identify places, not bases, where we can forward-locate the sustainment that’s necessary for our teammates to utilize in crises and conflicts,” he stated.

“Setting the theater is one of our primary responsibilities, and we try to do that through campaigning,” Clark stated. He added that leveraging new technologies makes the force more lethal and more survivable. “If we can see first, sense first, strike first, protect always, sustain as required, then that’s really where we want to focus technology,” Clark stated.

Gordon Arthur is an Asia correspondent for Defense News. Arthur worked in Hong Kong for 20 years and now resides in New Zealand. He has attended military exercises and defense exhibitions in about 20 countries around the Asia-Pacific region.