Philippines, Australia to join key military drills for the first time in 2025

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine troops will join Australia's largest military exercise for the first time next year, while the Australian Defense Force will make their debut in Philippine-led war games, both countries' defense chiefs announced Wednesday, November 13.

This was shared in a joint statement by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Australian Minister for Defense Richard Marles, issued after the first-ever defense meeting between both nations in Canberra on Tuesday, November 12.

The Philippines and Australia are deepening their military ties amid China's growing assertiveness in the region. Both defense chiefs reiterated their "serious concern about dangerous conduct by China against vessels from the Philippines" and vowed to work together to uphold regional maritime security, according to the statement. 

During the meeting, Teodoro and Marles also emphasized that all countries must pursue peaceful dispute resolution according to international law and reaffirmed the binding nature of the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Tribunal Award. They also stressed the importance of freedom of navigation and overflight in the region. 

New military exchanges

Landmark military exercises for both nations have been set in 2025.

The Philippine military next year will join for the first time Exercise Talisman Sabre, Australia's largest military exercise involving over 30,000 personnel. These biennial drills involve several countries, with the Philippines participating as observer in its last iteration in 2023.

Meanwhile, Australian forces will take part for the first time in Exercise Salaknib in the Philippines. These drills are traditionally held in Luzon and focuses on ground warfare tactics between Philippine and United States forces. 

The ADF will also deploy technical teams to conduct logistics and engineering surveys in the Philippines "to support bilateral training and enhanced interoperability with the Armed Forces of the Philippines." 

Both countries also agreed to enhance Exercise Alon for its second iteration in 2025. These drills — the first bilateral amphibious exercise between the Philippines and Australia — were launched in 2023.

Australia's defense chief also confirmed their country's continued participation in the Balikatan Exercises next year, which is expected to have the biggest troop deployment ever. Besides the Philippine and American forces, these drills next year will also see the participation of the Australian Armed Forces and the Japanese Self-Defense Force.

Both officials agreed to sign a new defense pact in 2025 that will formalize expanded training programs, official dialogues, leadership development, and infrastructure initiatives between the two countries under an Enhanced Defence Cooperation Program.

Teodoro and Marles also welcomed increased maritime cooperation within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone and activities to strengthen military interoperability among the four countries.

This defense meeting builds on earlier commitments made by both defense chiefs' with Japan and the US during a defense meeting in Honolulu in May. 

Regional issues

The wide-ranging talks also touched on shared concerns about "unprecedented military build-up taking place in the Indo-Pacific without reassurance or transparency."

"This represents a significant deepening of our defense partnership at a time when the rules-based order in our region faces unprecedented challenges," Marles said during the meeting.

Beyond Indo-Pacific security, the defense chiefs also expressed concern about North Korea's military support to Russia in Ukraine and its continued missile launches, which they said threaten regional stability.

Australia is the Philippines’ second-largest partner in defense and security. It is also one of only two nations with whom the Philippines maintains a Visiting Forces Agreement, the other being the US.