As the US blockades Iranian ships from sending oil to China, Canada’s military has sent a large force to join Washington’s effort to threaten that country. As Mark Carney calls US ties a “weakness”, Canada’s armed forces are quadrupling down on their US orientation.
Exercise BALIKATAN began Monday. Beijing views the massive US-led 19-day live-fire exercise across the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait as a threat. “Unilateralism and military bullying have already brought profound disasters to the world,” noted China’s foreign ministry spokesperson in response. Guo Jiakun added, “What the Asia-Pacific region most needs is peace and tranquillity. What it least needs is the introduction of external forces to create division and confrontation.”
This is the first time Canada has participated directly in the annual exercise. According to Canada’s ambassador in Manila, this country has dispatched the third largest deployment to the six-country exercise, which includes 10,000 US troops. According to the Canadian forces release, “Led by the United States and the Philippines, Exercise BALIKATAN will involve a broad range of CAF personnel and capabilities, including contributions from the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Air Force, the CAF Cyber Command, and the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command.”
HMCS Charlottetown is part of the exercise while 500 or more Canadian soldiers have travelled 10,000 kilometres to participate in this event.
As part of militaristic 2022 Indo-Pacific Strategy, Canada has deepened ‘defence’ ties with the Philippines. Six months ago, the two countries signed a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement. A year before that they established a Defence Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding and Canada gave the Philippines access to its Dark Vessel Detection System, which employs satellite technology to track ships in the South China Sea.
These efforts are designed to assist the US in its military buildup. The Bongbong Marcos led Philippines has taken a sharp turn back towards the US and against China. According to China Military Online, “Since the Marcos administration resumed defense cooperation with the US in 2022, the US military has been systematically shaping the Philippines into a forward operational hub. This includes the addition of four new military sites, the deployment of the Typhon mid-range missile system, the construction of large, prepositioned ammunition depots, and the frequent conduct of joint military exercises. Taken together, these developments indicate that the US is seeking to turn the Philippines into a forward stronghold for containing its strategic competitors.”
An archipelago of islands just south of Taiwan, the Philippines aid the US strategy to militarily encircle China. In a provocative move, Marcos even said the Philippines would participate in a war over Taiwan.
Exercise BALIKATAN is clearly part of a military buildup targeting China. In a statement on Canada’s role in BALIKATAN the pro-Washington IndoPacific Report explains:
“Canada’s shift from observer to active participant in Exercise BALIKATAN 2026 is not merely a training milestone it is a deliberate geopolitical signal. By deploying naval, army, air, cyber, and special operations forces alongside American and Filipino counterparts, Ottawa is operationalizing its Indo-Pacific Strategy in tangible military terms.”
“This matters because the South China Sea remains the central fault line of great-power competition, where Beijing’s coercive posture demands credible coalition responses. Canada brings alliance depth, not just capability. Its integration into air and missile defence and maritime strike operations strengthens the layered deterrence architecture that Washington is quietly constructing across the first island chain. Middle powers that show up, train together, and interoperate become harder to dismiss-and harder to isolate. The long-term implication is clear: the Indo-Pacific security order is becoming a coalition project, and Canada has chosen its side of the ledger.”
As Donald Trump threatens to annex Canada and Carney declares US ties a “weakness”, Canada’s military is assisting the US empire in their bid to contain the rise of the world’s most populous nation. Will any politician condemn Canadian participation in Exercise BALIKATAN?
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