'Balikatan' 2023 to include live-fire drills in urban terrain

From the Philippine News Agency (Dec 14, 2022): 'Balikatan' 2023 to include live-fire drills in urban terrain (By Priam Nepomuceno) 

BALIKATAN 2023. Planners from the Armed Forces of the Philippines finalize details of the 2023 iteration of Balikatan Exercises during the planning conference held at the AFP Education, Training and Doctrine Command, Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on Dec. 12, 2022. (Photo from PA)

MANILA – The 2023 iteration of the annual "Balikatan" joint exercises between American and Filipino troops will have a segment dedicated to operations in urban terrain.

"The 2023 iteration of 'Balikatan' is projected to include field training exercises composed of combined and live-fire exercises and military operations in urban terrain," Philippine Army (PA) spokesperson Col. Xerxes Trinidad said in a statement Tuesday night.

No other details were provided for security reasons. Urban terrain refers to heavily populated areas like towns or cities or locations densely packed with buildings and other infrastructure.

Trinidad made the statement after the PA joined the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and US Armed Forces’ Indo-Pacific Command (Indopacom) planners in threshing out the final details of next year's "Balikatan".

"The final planning conference (was held) at the AFP Education, Training and Doctrine Command, Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City on December 12, 2022," he added.

"Balikatan" is an annual exercise between the AFP and Indopacom geared at enhancing both forces' interoperability. "The annual bilateral activity is also aimed at strengthening the capacity and competencies of both forces in a spectrum of military operations such as counter-terrorism and humanitarian assistance and disaster response," Trinidad said.

In this year's "Balikatan" exercises, around 3,800 members of the AFP and 5,100 US military personnel -- the largest number of combined personnel of the two militaries in the annual exercise since the start of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic in 2020.

The Philippines and US exercise forces employed more than 50 aircraft, four ships, 10 amphibious craft, four high mobility artillery rocket system launchers, and four Patriot missile systems during "Balikatan" 2022.

This year’s exercise also included approximately 40 personnel from the Australian Defense Force.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1190718