US and Philippines Conduct Largest-Ever Joint Military Drills Near Disputed Waters.

The US and the Philippines have launched their largest combat exercises in decades, involving over 17,600 military personnel, including live-fire drills in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. The exercises will run until April 28 and will showcase American firepower in Asia, where the US has repeatedly warned China over its increasingly aggressive actions in the disputed sea channel and against Taiwan. The drills will include a boat-sinking rocket assault in Philippine territorial waters, which will likely inflame China.