United States
Australia
United Kingdom
Europe
New Zealand
Canada
CAMP AGUINALDO, Philippines — Military cyber teams from the Philippines, the United States, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Canada, and France trained side by side in a first-of-its-kind multinational Cyber Defense Exercise during Balikatan 2026, held April 21-May 6.
“The cyber defense exercise is a multilateral cyber range training involving more than 150 participants from seven nations,” said U.S. Marine Master Gunnery Sgt. Christopher Renteria, chief of cyberspace warfare, I Marine Expeditionary Force. “It includes simulating real-world scenarios, defending critical infrastructure against remote attacks and sharing best practices.”
The effort focused on building interoperability and aligning cyber defense tactics across participating forces. The exercise structure included opposing red and blue teams, an intelligence element, and a white cell that oversaw training and tempo. Red teams emulated adversaries by injecting offensive cyber effects into blue networks, while blue teams acted as the primary training audience, defending network infrastructure. The intelligence team consolidated findings from both sides to analyze tactics and techniques, and the white cell provided instruction and mentorship throughout.
Organizers emphasized realism, presenting technical challenges such as accurately replicating network topologies and services. The closed cyber range allowed systems to be actively exploited and attacked, offering a realistic environment that, Renteria noted, gave defenders a rigorous venue to test their skills.
“The U.S. has some of the most advanced technologies right now in cyber, so this collaboration opportunity is great for building unified capabilities,” said Armed Forces of the Philippines Private 1st Class Jacob Thadeus Sabado, AFP Cyber Command cyber analyst. “Here in the Philippines, we can capture or learn from our partners and others during this exercise.”
Participants also worked to synchronize defensive standards to strengthen trust and coordination, aiming to enable faster, collective responses to real-world cyber threats.
“There’s a lot to learn,” said U.S. Air Force Capt. Yaereem Lee, deputy branch chief of offensive cyber operations, Pacific Air Forces. “There’s so many different ways that people interact and to get to learn from other nations, [it] is such a great experience.”
Balikatan is a longstanding annual exercise between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the U.S. military designed to reinforce the alliance, enhance combined capabilities, and demonstrate a shared commitment to regional stability and prosperity.
