2016 Cope North exercises bigger and broader than ever

Cope North exercise aims to strengthen Pacific alliances

With nearly 3,000 personnel and 100 aircraft participating, this is the largest Cope North ever. The exercise was first held at Misawa Air Base, Japan, in 1978 and moved to Andersen in 1999.

Aircraft from the U.S. Air Force and Navy, Japan and Australia are being used for the disaster-relief and combat-readiness drills, which kicked off last week and run through Feb. 26.

The Philippines air force has joined Cope North for the first time, sending representatives for the disaster-response portion of the exercise. Personnel from the South Korean and New Zealand air forces are also participating. Bangladesh, Canada, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand have sent observers.

Overlooking a stopover

Philippine President, Malaysia Prime Minister to Stop on Guam

Some leaders from Asia will be landing on Guam in a few hours for a technical stop, including Philippine President Benigno Aquino and Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Guam International Airport Spokesperson Rolenda Faasuamalie says the two heads of state will be arriving in separate airplanes and will be on Guam for less than an hour for a fuel stop.

Both are returning to their home countries after attending the US-ASEAN summit in Caifornia, which is the first time this summit has ever been hosted in the US.

How much more convenient and neighborly would it have been for the White House to have held the summit nearer to the home of ASEAN, on sovereign US soil in the middle of the Asia-Pacific region?