Philippines-Australia kick off Exercise Alon 2023

The Philippines and Australia on Monday kicked off their first-ever joint amphibious training in Darwin, Australia.

Onboard HMAS Canberra, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Australian Defense Force (ADF) launched Exercise Alon 2023, which is targeted to further enhance the countries’ interoperability and readiness to respond to shared security challenges.

The ship left Australia to sail to the Philippines after the opening ceremony, which the AFP said “depicts the start of a bilateral and joint-led amphibious field training exercise” of the military contingents.

Exercise Alon 2023 is part of Australia’s 2023 Indo-Pacific Endeavour, which aims to “promote security, stability, stronger partnership through bilateral and multilateral engagement training, capacity building and humanitarian efforts.”

The bilateral exercise will be held in various training locations in the Philippines, including the Northern Luzon Command and Western Command with ground, aviation, and surface assets from the ADF, Philippine Navy, Philippine Marine Corps, Philippine Fleet, Philippine Air Force, and Philippine Army supported by the United States Marine Corps.

According to the AFP, the main objective of the exercise is to enhance interoperability between the military contingents and be able to share tactics, techniques and procedures, and best practices in the conduct of amphibious operations.

It will likewise help enhance regional security through cooperation and partnership and will strengthen the countries’ interoperability and readiness to respond to shared security challenges. — DVM, GMA Integrated News