"We celebrated the start of our 38th annual exercise Balikatan. More than 17,000 troops are participating this year. It is the largest and most complex iteration in the exercise's history," US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin tells a press conference, alongside Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo, and Defense Chief Carlito Galvez. The two countries launched their largest-ever joint military exercises, as the longstanding allies seek to counter growing Chinese assertiveness in the region. SOUNDBITE

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