For the first time since World War II, Japan deployed combat troops to Philippine soil — about 1,400 personnel — as part of Balikatan 2026, the largest iteration of the US-Philippines exercise yet.
Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force troops fired Type 88 anti-ship missiles from Ilocos Norte and sank the decommissioned BRP Quezon roughly 50–75 km offshore, Japan's first use of the system outside its own territory.
The drill, joined by US, Philippine, and Australian forces, simulates repelling an amphibious assault in the South China Sea, and China has condemned it as "remilitarization" and "playing with fire."
The exercise runs April 20–May 8 with ~17,000 troops from seven nations.