A Show of Force Against US-Philippines 'Balikatan' Drill? PLA Conducts Live-Fire Exercise East of Luzon Island
Coinciding with the US-Philippines 'Balikatan' joint military exercise, the Chinese PLA conducted live-fire drills east of Luzon Island, Philippines. China stated this was a 'necessary action' in response to current regional tensions.
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- 📰 Published: April 24, 2026 at 21:28
- 🔍 Collected: April 24, 2026 at 21:32 (3 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 24, 2026 at 22:00 (27 min after Collected)
(Central News Agency, Taipei, 24th) The Philippines and the United States kicked off their annual 'Balikatan' (Shoulder-to-Shoulder) large-scale joint military exercise on the 20th, with several allied nations including Japan and Australia sending troops to participate. The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command announced today that it recently organized the 107 flotilla to conduct drills in the waters east of Luzon Island in the Philippines, performing live-fire exercises, claiming this was a 'necessary action taken in response to the current regional situation.'
The PLA Southern Theater Command's WeChat official account released a Chinese and English press release at 6 PM on the 24th stating that recently, the Southern Theater Command organized the 107 flotilla to conduct drills in the waters east of Luzon Island, Philippines. The drills focused on live-fire shooting, sea-air coordination, rapid maneuvering, and navigation supply, to test integrated joint operational capabilities.
The PLA Southern Theater Command claimed that this is a 'necessary action taken in response to the current regional situation,' which complies with relevant international laws and international practices. The theater forces will routinely organize relevant military actions based on security situation needs to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and regional peace and stability.
The Southern Theater Command also released a 25-second video showing that the 107 flotilla consists of at least four warships, three of which are guided-missile destroyers. Appearing at close range were the Type 055 Zunyi (hull number 107) and Type 052D Hefei (hull number 174); there was also one Type 903A supply ship.
The video showed the PLA Southern Theater Command's 107 flotilla launching drones, firing rocket launchers, and conducting live-fire shooting with anti-aircraft rapid-fire guns and naval guns during the drill.
This year's 'Balikatan' joint military exercise started on the 20th, with seven countries participating, including the Philippines, the US, Japan, Australia, Canada, France, and New Zealand. The scale exceeds 17,000 personnel, and it is scheduled to end in the first week of May.
Among them, Japan sent more than a thousand troops on a large scale for the first time, deploying multiple types of equipment including two warships, and plans to use Type 88 land-based anti-ship missiles for live-fire shooting during the exercise, sparking China's dissatisfaction.
According to mainland media The Paper, during a regular press conference held by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 20th, a reporter asked: Japan's Self-Defense Forces are also participating in this year's annual US-Philippines joint military exercise. 'This exercise comes at a time of tense China-Philippines and China-Japan relations. What is China's position on this US-Philippines military exercise?'
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun responded that military and security cooperation between countries should not undermine mutual understanding and trust among regional countries, should not disrupt regional peace and stability, and should not target or harm the interests of third parties. 'We want to remind relevant countries that blindly binding themselves together in security will only draw fire upon themselves and backfire.' (Editors: Yang Sheng-ju / Hsieh I-hsuan) 1150424
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The PLA Southern Theater Command's WeChat official account released a Chinese and English press release at 6 PM on the 24th stating that recently, the Southern Theater Command organized the 107 flotilla to conduct drills in the waters east of Luzon Island, Philippines. The drills focused on live-fire shooting, sea-air coordination, rapid maneuvering, and navigation supply, to test integrated joint operational capabilities.
The PLA Southern Theater Command claimed that this is a 'necessary action taken in response to the current regional situation,' which complies with relevant international laws and international practices. The theater forces will routinely organize relevant military actions based on security situation needs to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and regional peace and stability.
The Southern Theater Command also released a 25-second video showing that the 107 flotilla consists of at least four warships, three of which are guided-missile destroyers. Appearing at close range were the Type 055 Zunyi (hull number 107) and Type 052D Hefei (hull number 174); there was also one Type 903A supply ship.
The video showed the PLA Southern Theater Command's 107 flotilla launching drones, firing rocket launchers, and conducting live-fire shooting with anti-aircraft rapid-fire guns and naval guns during the drill.
This year's 'Balikatan' joint military exercise started on the 20th, with seven countries participating, including the Philippines, the US, Japan, Australia, Canada, France, and New Zealand. The scale exceeds 17,000 personnel, and it is scheduled to end in the first week of May.
Among them, Japan sent more than a thousand troops on a large scale for the first time, deploying multiple types of equipment including two warships, and plans to use Type 88 land-based anti-ship missiles for live-fire shooting during the exercise, sparking China's dissatisfaction.
According to mainland media The Paper, during a regular press conference held by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 20th, a reporter asked: Japan's Self-Defense Forces are also participating in this year's annual US-Philippines joint military exercise. 'This exercise comes at a time of tense China-Philippines and China-Japan relations. What is China's position on this US-Philippines military exercise?'
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun responded that military and security cooperation between countries should not undermine mutual understanding and trust among regional countries, should not disrupt regional peace and stability, and should not target or harm the interests of third parties. 'We want to remind relevant countries that blindly binding themselves together in security will only draw fire upon themselves and backfire.' (Editors: Yang Sheng-ju / Hsieh I-hsuan) 1150424
Choose to stand with the facts, every sponsorship from you is the power to protect press freedom.
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The text, images, and audio/video on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.