Philippines, US troops train for disaster response

1 week ago 4
Suniway Group of Companies Inc.

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

June 6, 2026 | 12:00am

Col. Xerxes Trinidad, AFP public affairs office chief, said the Philippine and US militaries formally opened the nine-day event, dubbed Exercise Tempest Express 41-2026, under the Multinational Planning Augmentation Team or MPAT program.

STAR / File

MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the United States Indo-Pacific Command are training together, not for military operations purposes but for disaster preparedness and response.

Col. Xerxes Trinidad, AFP public affairs office chief, said the Philippine and US militaries formally opened the nine-day event, dubbed Exercise Tempest Express 41-2026, under the Multinational Planning Augmentation Team or MPAT program.

Trinidad said the exercise would run from June 3 to 11 and bring together representatives from 17 MPAT nations and 31 MPAT members, as well as humanitarian organizations and civilian agencies.

He said the activity aims to strengthen disaster response planning, enhance interoperability, and improve coordination during humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations.

Read Entire Article