ZAMBOANGA (AP) - Three U.S. warships with 1,400 troops sailed into a southern Philippine port and navy base for a 10-day exercise with the Philippine military amid an ongoing campaign against al-Qaida-linked militants, the U.S. Embassy said Thursday.
U.S. troops are barred from combat in the Philippines and the exercise will involve scenarios such as natural disasters and maritime interceptions of criminals and terrorists, the embassy said in a statement.
It said it was beneficial for allies to practice multinational responses to regional emergencies, like the 2004 tsunami disaster. Apart from the Philippines, the annual drills, known as "Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training," or CARAT, are conducted between the U.S. and Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
The U.S. Navy group includes the USS Harpers Ferry, from Sasebo, Japan, the USS Ford, from Everett, Washington, and the USS Jarett, from San Diego, California.
The embassy said the Navy Seabees and Army doctors and veterinarians will take part in medical and humanitarian missions on Basilan island, near Zamboanga, once a hotbed of the militant Abu Sayyaf group.
The U.S. and Philippine militaries have used a combination of humanitarian work and military tactics to win over the local Muslim population and marginalize militants. The campaign, launched in 2002, has led to the capture or killing of several high-profile terrorist leaders.