U.S. Marines and their Filipino counterparts have staged joint combat drills near southern Taiwan, a flashpoint in the Washington-Beijing military rivalry.
U.S. and Filipino forces sank a ship with precision rockets, airstrikes and artillery in their largest war drills, which are likely to antagonize China.
This year's Balikatan exercises between the treaty allies are the largest since the two sides started joint military combat-readiness exercises in 1990s.
China has warned that a deepening US-Philippines security alliance should not harm its security and territorial interests, especially in South China Sea.
The Philippine government has identified four new local military areas where rotational U.S. forces with their weapons will be allowed to stay indefinitely