{"id":126104,"date":"2026-05-08T10:49:02","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T10:49:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/05\/08\/us-and-allies-test-capabilities-near-asias-flash-point-npr\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T10:50:22","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T10:50:22","slug":"us-and-allies-test-capabilities-near-asias-flash-point-npr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christiancorner.us\/index.php\/2026\/05\/08\/us-and-allies-test-capabilities-near-asias-flash-point-npr\/","title":{"rendered":"US and allies test capabilities near Asia’s flash point: NPR"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Soldiers of the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division create battle positions on the beach of the La Paz Sand Dunes in Laoag City, Philippines, prior to counterlanding exercises during the annual Balikatan exercise.
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Anthony Kuhn\/NPR<\/p>\n

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Anthony Kuhn\/NPR<\/p>\n

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LAOG CITY, Philippines \u2013 Silver drone boats scanned the blue waters for targets, rocket artillery shells fired from behind sand dunes, mortars and machine guns pounded the surf, and generator-powered air conditioners and tents cooled stacks of data servers on the beach, as U.S. and allied forces practiced repelling an amphibious assault.<\/p>\n

It is part of US-led drills on Luzon, the Philippines’ largest island, known as Balikatan or “shoulder to shoulder” in Tagalog. It tested the U.S. military’s new weapons, emerging strategies, and changing alliances amid geopolitical tensions and rapidly evolving technologies.<\/p>\n