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Download Washington and Manila on Monday kicked off their second joint military drill of the year, and analysts warned that the move will bring more uncertainty to regional ties in the wake of the Huangyan Island incident. The Philippines-US naval training exercises, scheduled from Monday to July 10 near Mindanao Sea, began with US vessels, including the USS Vandegrift, arriving at Makar Port in General Santos City in the southern Philippines on Sunday. The drill involves 450 members of the Philippine Navy and Philippine Coast Guard, and 500 staff members of the US Navy and Coast Guard. Dave Welch, commodore of the USS Vandegrift, said the training will include in-port exercises and expertise exchanges, Xinhua reported. Although the Philippines' armed forces said the drill is an annual routine and "not aimed at any third party", analysts said the exercise benefits the country and further helps the US shift strategic emphasis back to the Asia-Pacific region. "The drill shows both Washington and Manila's will to beef up their alliance since the 1950s, and Manila has received support from Washington in various areas, especially this year," said Yang Baoyun, a professor of Southeast Asian studies at Peking University. The US has reiterated that it does not take a position on the rival territorial claims of countries in the South China Sea, but Manila still has expressed its hope that Washington could back its claim to China's Huangyan Island, Yang said. | 
