Annual RP-US Balikatan kicks off next month

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines and the United States will conduct starting next month the annual Balikatan joint military exercises focusing on providing relief and assistance together in the event of natural disasters and other crises that endanger public health and safety, the US embassy in Manila announced yesterday.

This as US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, together with her two pet cats - Junior and Emily - and two Filipino employees bid farewell to Filipinos yesterday as she flew back to the US via Northwest Airlines flight 280 at 8:20 a.m.

The embassy said Philippine and US military service members will provide medical, dental, and veterinary care and construct and repair schools and other infrastructure in communities most in need of assistance during Operation Pacific Angel, the first phase of the Balikatan project, from Feb. 15 to 22.

The Balikatan proper or the second phase of the joint military exercise will be conducted from March 9 to 19, with the military of both countries conducting combined staff exercises and field training in Central Luzon to improve contingency planning.

US Navy ship visits and a joint/combined exchange training exercise will also take place off the coasts of Central Luzon and Cavite.

“Operation Pacific Angel and Balikatan 2010 will be a continuation of reconstruction efforts following the typhoons that devastated parts of the country last year,” said Kenney.

Balikatan 2010 will be the 26th annual event of its kind held under the Mutual Defense Treaty and Visiting Forces Agreement.

Meantime, Kenney, wearing a blue shirt and jeans, was seen teary-eyed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport yesterday as she waited for her flight back to the US.

Customs collector Teresita Roque said Kenney seemed to be leaving the country with a heavy heart as she expressed her love and gratitude for the Philippines and its citizens.

During her four-year stay in the country, Kenney endeared herself to Filipinos with her charm, humility and outgoing personality.

In her last blog entry as US ambassador to the Philippines, Kenney said it was an “extraordinary honor” to represent her country in one of its oldest allies, even as she asked Filipinos to extend the same hospitality to incoming ambassador Harry K. Thomas, the first black American envoy to Manila. – With Rudy Santos