Standing shoulder to shoulder with friends

In the past, Balikatan was immediately associated with joint military exercises between the Philippines and the United States. Participation was once limited to Filipino and American troops standing shoulder to shoulder, working in support of a longstanding alliance.

Today, Balikatan reflects a broader strategic reality. While the US remains a key ally, the exercises have evolved into a platform for cooperation among like-minded states committed to regional peace, stability, and the rule of law.

This establishes a powerful geostrategic posture. As tensions rise across the Indo-Pacific and coercive actions continue in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines faces a security environment that demands stronger partnerships, deeper interoperability, and a more credible deterrent posture.

This year’s Balikatan, which opened on April 20, brings together around 17,000 personnel from the Philippines and partner countries including the US, Australia, Japan, Canada, France, and New Zealand.

That growing participation demonstrates a clear message: the Philippines is not alone. Nations that value international law and a free and open Indo-Pacific are prepared to work together against intimidation, unlawful claims, and efforts to alter the status quo by force.

Just as important, Balikatan demonstrates that modern security cooperation is no longer confined to traditional battlefield scenarios. It now includes maritime domain awareness, humanitarian assistance and disaster response, cyber defense, logistics coordination, intelligence-sharing, and rapid response to emerging threats. These are capabilities the Philippines must continue to develop as it modernizes its armed forces and strengthens national resilience.

Joint exercises also help build familiarity and trust among partner militaries. In times of crisis, relationships built through regular training can be as important as hardware or equipment. Preparedness is strengthened when forces already know how to communicate, coordinate, and operate together.

This direction is especially significant as the country approaches the 10th anniversary of the 2016 South China Sea Arbitration this July. The ruling affirmed the Philippines’ sovereign rights under international law and rejected expansive maritime claims inconsistent with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

That legal victory remains final and nonnegotiable. To weaken it through silence, inaction, or poorly calibrated concessions would erode the clarity and certainty it established. It would also send the wrong signal that sustained pressure can succeed where law has already spoken.

Yet despite that landmark decision, Filipino fisherfolk and uniformed personnel continue to face harassment at sea. Water cannons, dangerous maneuvers, shadowing operations, blocking actions, and sustained pressure have become tools of coercion designed to wear down resolve without triggering open conflict.

These incidents are not isolated encounters. They form part of a broader pattern meant to normalize intimidation and test the resolve of smaller states. Such behavior must be met with steadiness, unity, and preparedness.

For the Philippines, the lesson is clear: the correct path forward is not accommodation toward coercion, but deeper alignment with states prepared to help preserve stability, uphold international law, and strengthen regional resilience.

This is why the Philippines must move beyond rhetoric and fully operationalize active defense. Exercises such as Balikatan build readiness across land, sea, air, and cyberspace while strengthening the partnerships necessary to preserve stability.

Japan has steadily expanded its security role in the Indo-Pacific. In this year’s Balikatan exercises, the Japan Self-Defense Forces participated, for the first time, as an active participant rather than solely as an observer. This marks a significant step in Japan’s deepening defense engagement with the Philippines and other regional partners. This development highlights the growing willingness of like-minded states to move beyond symbolic support and contribute directly to strengthening interoperability and collective preparedness.

The Philippines must be discerning in choosing its partners. Pursuing closer ties with a state that repeatedly undermines Philippine sovereign rights, disregards international law, and employs coercion in the West Philippine Sea is strategically unsound.

We already have credible and reliable partners willing to support our security and uphold stability. We stand shoulder to shoulder with friends who respect our rights, strengthen our defenses, and help secure the peace.

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Dindo Manhit is the founder and CEO of Stratbase Group.

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