The Philippine and United States Army Special Forces have started the conduct of three weeks of annual bilateral exercise in an opening ceremony at Fort Ramon Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija on Tuesday.

Col. Xerxes Trinidad, Philippine Army public affairs chief, said the three-week bilateral exercise dubbed Balance Piston 22-1 is participated by more than 100 Philippine Army’s Special Forces Regiment "Airborne" SFRA and US Army Special Forces.

"Balance Piston 22-1, which will culminate on March 7, 2022, will focus on human rights and law of armed conflict; combat management of marksmanship skills; small unmanned aerial systems tactics techniques, and procedures; command and control structure; mission planning; unconventional warfare subject matter experts exchange; crisis action planning, fundamentals of reconnaissance; find, fix, finish, exploit, analyze, disseminate; urban reconnaissance; tactical combat casualty care; and a culmination exercise," he said.

SFRA Acting Commander Col. Eliglen Villaflor said the exercise will help SFRA identify operational capabilities and competency gaps as they "observe and learn" from their partners in the US Special Forces.

Xerxes said the Balance Piston 22-1 "provides an avenue to Filipino and US Special Forces to learn and exchange tactics, techniques, procedures, and best practices. It also tests and validates plans, procedures, and concepts to enhance collaboration and interoperability between Filipino and the US Special Forces."

"The annual exercise reinforces the thrust of Army Commanding General Lt. Gen. Romeo S. Brawner, Jr., to enhance the skills of soldiers and competencies of Army units to further empower them in mission accomplishment," he said. Robina Asido/DMS