The United States has stationed troops and anti-ship missile systems in the northern Philippines as part of ongoing joint military exercises designed to deter China and restrict its possible access to the Pacific Ocean through the Bashi Channel in case of a conflict over Taiwan.

Senior Philippine defence officials confirmed the deployment, which highlights Washington’s growing military presence across the Philippine islands and reflects Manila’s renewed importance in the US-China struggle for influence in the Asia-Pacific region, as reported by Reuters.

The Bashi Channel is a narrow waterway separating the Philippines’ Batanes Islands from Taiwan. It is considered one of the most critical maritime routes in the region, linking the South China Sea with the Western Pacific. Since 2023, US and Philippine forces have carried out several joint exercises in this area, including airlifts of mobile anti-ship missile launchers.

Military experts believe these drills demonstrate Washington’s intent to block Chinese warships from passing through the channel if Beijing attempts to invade or blockade Taiwan.

“We should have the ability to deny the Chinese control of the Bashi Channel,” said retired Rear Admiral Rommel Ong, former vice commander of the Philippine Navy. “In a conflict scenario, that decisive point will determine who wins or who loses.”

Retired General Emmanuel Bautista, former Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, expressed his view more directly. “The invasion of Taiwan is almost impossible if you don’t control the northern Philippines,” he said.

For the residents of Batanes, a quiet island chain less than 150 kilometres from Taiwan, the presence of foreign troops has become a new reality.

“When we first saw the helicopters and soldiers, we thought China might attack,” said Marilyn Hubalde, a 65-year-old shop owner in Basco, the provincial capital. “Now we’ve gotten used to it — but it still feels like we’re living on the front line of a war that hasn’t started yet.”

The islands’ 20,000 residents have been witnessing a steady arrival of US troops and military equipment for training exercises, a major change from their earlier peaceful and isolated life.

The Philippines lies at the heart of what defence experts describe as the First Island Chain, a line of US-aligned territories stretching from Japan through Taiwan and the Philippines to Borneo. Analysts say that controlling this chain is crucial to limiting China’s naval reach and protecting US and allied interests in the Pacific.

“By divine design, we have been put here,” said Rear Admiral Roy Trinidad, spokesperson for the Philippine Navy. “We are the toll gate between the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean.”

In June, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress that strengthening the First Island Chain remained a top priority. “We are modernising the capabilities needed to deny Chinese aggression,” he said, confirming a “robust rotational force presence” in the Philippines.

Three decades after the Philippines ordered the US to leave its military bases at Subic Bay and Clark, American troops are once again a near-constant presence across the country. Under the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement, US forces now rotate through at least nine sites nationwide, including new access points in the northern and western regions facing Taiwan and the South China Sea.

Military officials said more than 500 joint engagements, including large-scale drills, humanitarian operations, and training missions, are planned for 2026, marking the highest level of defence cooperation between the two countries in decades.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who has restored close relations with Washington after strained ties under his predecessor Rodrigo Duterte, admitted the risk of getting involved in a Taiwan conflict. “If there is a war over Taiwan, we will be drawn into that mess,” he said in August. “We do not want to go to war, but geography gives us little choice.”

China has repeatedly criticised the growing US military presence in the Philippines, accusing Washington of creating instability in the region and Manila of “inviting external interference.”

“The Taiwan issue is China’s internal affair,” the Chinese foreign ministry said in response to questions about the drills. “How to resolve it is solely China’s own business and does not warrant interference from others.”

China has also increased what defence experts call “grey-zone operations,” which involve aggressive actions that stop short of direct conflict. Philippine officials said Chinese coastguard and naval ships have often been seen near Batanes and within the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

In August, the Philippine Navy reported “multiple unauthorised incursions” by Chinese vessels north of Luzon. The defence ministry condemned these acts as “acts of intimidation” that “violate international law.”

The military buildup comes amid growing Chinese activity near Taiwan. In June, a Chinese aircraft carrier group passed through the Bashi Channel into the Western Pacific for extended exercises south of Japan, which analysts said showed the channel’s importance to Beijing’s military plans.

For Washington, securing the Philippines is vital to any defence of Taiwan. For Manila, maintaining a balance between the two major powers is becoming more difficult. However, Philippine officials have said the alliance remains central to the country’s security.

“The commitments made by the highest officials of the US government remain solid,” the Philippine defence ministry said in a statement. “Our cooperation is not about provoking conflict, but about ensuring peace and stability in the region.”

As the joint drills continue and tensions increase, the quiet islands of Batanes now find themselves at the centre of a growing contest for control over the Pacific’s future — one defined by US-led defence efforts and China’s expanding influence.