CAMP AGUINALDO, Quezon City--LtGen Greg Bilton, Chief of Joint Operations of the Australian Defence Forces, extended an invitation for the Armed Forces of the Philippines to participate in the Exercise Talisman Sabre in 2025 during his visit to the AFP General Headquarters on August 2022 here.
In his meeting with LtGen Charlton Sean Gaerlan, The Deputy Chief of Staff AFP (TDCSAFP), the two discussed the possibility of the AFP joining the biennial exercise with Australia and the United States in order to achieve the common training goals with other like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific region.
“It is normal for observer nations to participate in the next iteration of the exercise after having been an observer. LtGen Bilton asked for what we’d like to do and achieve and the exercise design will be shaped to include these,” said LtCol Enrico Gil Ileto, Chief of the AFP Public Affairs Office.
In the 2023 iteration, Fiji, France, Indonesia, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand Papua New Guinea, Tonga, the United Kingdom, Canada and Germany attended as participants, with the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand as observers.
The two generals also discussed the ongoing PH-AUS Exercise “Alon” under the Indo-Pacific Endeavor 2023 and thanked each other for their roles in the planning and execution of the training.
“The TDCSAFP also extended the AFP’s gratitude to the Australian government for its support to the AFP’s counterterrorism efforts and its stance in the issues in the West Philippine Sea,” LtCol Ileto added.///
(Photo by PFC Carmelotes/PAOAFP)
