This is the first in a two-part series from the northernmost province of the Philippines.
mabris island, philippines – A military detachment on the Philippines' northernmost island faces northwest, facing the western sun, the country's biggest potential enemy.
Mavlis Island was uninhabited until 2016, when the Philippine military erected a flagpole at the highest point of the island and began constructing shelters for fishermen.
Around 15 people were killed as tensions with China escalate over the disputed South China Sea and China's growing claims to Taiwan, which is located just 142 kilometers (88 miles) away and whose wartime lights flash in the distance. soldiers are stationed in rotation at the rocky outpost. night.
In February, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro visited Mabris and promised to further improve military bases in Batanes province, which includes the island, calling the province “the vanguard of the Philippines.”
The United States is providing critical support as the cash-strapped Philippine military relies only on basic equipment and technology to fortify the island.
Sources said the military plans to begin construction on new warehouses, military outposts and port improvements on Batanes and Itbayat islands this month.
The two countries will also conduct joint military exercises on Batan Island and, for the first time, in the country's northernmost municipality, Itbayat, as part of the annual Balikatan exercise starting April 22.
The Philippines has pivoted to a long-standing military alliance with the United States after repeated clashes with China in the South China Sea.
Manila and Washington have a mutual defense treaty, and the United States is concerned not only about the South China Sea, a major international trade route, but also about Taiwan, which Beijing claims.
“We need to strengthen our defense posture,” Rodrigo Lutao, a spokesman for the Army's Northern Luzon Command, which also covers Batanes, told Al Jazeera.
“We recognized that the Batanes Islands, especially Mavris Island, is a strategic area where we can deploy troops and defense supplies.”