THE PHILIPPINES and other allied nations kicked off the Joint Pacific Multinational Readiness Center Rotation 23-01 at the Schofield Barracks, Oahu, Hawaii on October 20, 2022, Colonel Xerxes A. Trinidad, chief of the Army’s Public Affairs Office, said.

The JPMRC, which will be conducted across the Hawaiian islands, envisions a tough, realistic exercise that tests large-scale combat capabilities in live, virtual and constructed environments.

The exercise will level up the capability of the 91st Brigade Reconnaissance Team and 1st Brigade Combat Team in terms of combined arms operations.

Doctrine writers and researchers will also capture the best practices and operational aspects of the exercise which will help the Army establish its doctrine related to the Combat Readiness Training Area.

The Philippine Army hopes that through its participation in the JPMRC, it will strengthen its security and defense cooperation with the US and other partners in the Indo-Pacific region.

Soldiers from the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia as well as observers from seven other nations joined the exercises.

“They will train side by side with around 6,000 troops from the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division and 8,400 service members from the U.S. joint components,” Trinidad said.

”We’re not here to focus on our very differences but on our similarities that make us a world-class force able to fight and win the Pacific. This exercise will deepen our partnerships, keep those friendships and be more interoperable,” 25th Infantry Division Deputy Commander Brig Gen. Jeffrey A. VanAntwerp said in his keynote remarks.