The Western powers, led by the United States, are dangerously encroaching towards the Russian naval base at Vladivostok and China’s Eastern, Southern, and Northern fleets. The naval encroachment in the name of exercises could be extremely dangerous.
Introduction
It is interesting to note here that Canada and France are with the United States, and these powers are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Japan and Australia are with the US in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, or Quad. Japan also has one of the largest US naval bases at the seaport of Yokosuka, where the US Navy’s 7th Fleet has been stationed since the end of World War II. Also, Australia and New Zealand are the pact members with the US in the ANZUS Defence Treaty. Also, the US and the United Kingdom are pursuing multi-billion joint nuclear submarine manufacturing along with Australia, known as AUKUS. Moreover, the US has a joint mechanism for intelligence-sharing alliance with the UK, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, known as Five Eyes (FVEY). Lastly, sometimes the Philippines behaves like a US colony and still hosts several US military bases. It would be thought-provoking that since the US-Philippines War of 1898, the Philippines is still under US control and is actively taking the same position in international relations.
Balikatan Exercise at Itbayat Island: Aimed at China
On April 28, 2026, the United States Naval Institute reported some very dangerous news. It said that the participating allied forces were deployed to the Luzon Strait, just 100 miles south of Taiwan. The US also deployed the M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS). It is to be noted that the HIMARS could strike targets precisely at ranges from 115 to 310 miles. The US also used advanced systems such as the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS), and HIMARS were inserted using the C-130 airlift aircraft. It was reported that in Luzon, the Japan Ground Self -Defence Forces, along with the Philippine Marine Corps, used their Type-88 as well as Indian-made BrahMos cruise missiles. The BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was jointly developed by India and Russia almost two decades ago.
Balikatan Exercise: A Threat for Russia and China
The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova replied to a question from a journalist on April 24, 2026, regarding the Balikatan Exercise. Ms. Zakharova said that “As for the participation of the Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force in the large-scale Balikatan exercise, we regularly notify Tokyo of our concern over its expanding military activity within the framework of its alliance with the United States and all-round assistance to Washington’s efforts to create narrow-bloc quasi-alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. These steps can only increase tensions in that part of the world and will not contribute to stability and harmonious joint development.”
Reuters reported that the Russian policymakers are concerned due to the first-ever participation of Japan in the US-Philippines naval drills. The readers should not forget that recently Japan, under the new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, has become more aggressive and is openly displaying its defiance of its so-called pacifism. Recently, the three documents, namely the National Security Strategy (NSS), National Defence Strategy (NDS) and Defence Buildup Program (DBP) have become more aggressive. PM Sanae Takaichi has raised the defence budget to 58 billion USD as well.
On April 24, 2026, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) started conducting naval exercises as a response to Exercise Balikatan. The PLAN immediately dispatched its Naval Task Group 107 in the waters East of Luzon Island in the Philippines. The Naval Task Group 107 included the most advanced Type 055 and Type 052D destroyers of China. The PLA’s Southern Theatre Command said that it was closely monitoring the situation and conducted the exercises as a response.
Conclusion
The Exercise Balikatan 2026 has fully attested to the fact that the US, as always, is fully determined to throw its allies under the bus. As mentioned earlier, the US has embroiled nations around the globe in a never-ending threat of war, and as one enemy fades away, America creates or finds a new enemy to fight. During the twentieth century, America first made Wilhelmine Germany an enemy and destroyed it using its European allies during World War I, and the Europeans lost millions of lives. Then, it made Imperial Japan an enemy and dropped two atomic bombs on it in August 1945. However, today Germany and Japan are very close American allies. During the Cold War, America declared the Soviet Union an enemy and threw all of its allies against the Soviet Union and declared the warlords of Afghanistan as Mujahedeen. After the Cold War, America created a new enemy and started calling the Mujahedeen terrorists and launched the Global War on Terror.
Likewise, now America needs a new enemy. For this purpose, America has successfully established defence pacts, alliances, and agreements like NATO, ANZUS, AUKUS, Quad, FVEY, and so many others to keep them perpetually dependent on the US. All these arrangements have a security outlook, and their apparent targets are Russia and China.
Simon Westwood is a Masters student at the Dublin City University (DCU), Ireland. He is also a Research Assistant at the DCU’s Department of History
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