Typhoon hotspots: Luzon is center stage as Fung-wong and other storms threaten PH, with Palawan and Manila on alert. Largest island and political/economic hub of the Philippines.
The Balikatan exercises are extending to include Japan, Canada and France, with more than 17,000 personnel from the Philippines, United States and allies practicing coastal defense, maritime operations and live-fire drills across multiple locations through May 8. The drills highlight a broadened security network amid ongoing tensions in the South China Sea.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake has struck off Mindanao on Monday morning, killing dozens, injuring hundreds and displacing tens of thousands. General Santos City and nearby provinces have reported collapsed buildings, landslides and damaged infrastructure. Rescue teams are searching rubble while aftershocks and earlier tsunami alerts are complicating operations.
Taiwan is conducting a five-day immediate combat readiness exercise focusing on rapid peacetime-to-wartime deployment. The drills come as China’s navy conducts carrier operations near Taiwan, with Chinese officials warning against separatism even as Tokyo and Washington monitor the situation.