United States Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler confirmed the test firing of the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) during the recent Balikatan exercise in the Philippines.

The NMESIS, a ground-based anti-ship missile system, was deployed by the United States in the Philippines for the first time to participate in the 40th Balikatan exercise on April 21 to May 9.

"Balikatan has evolved rapidly in sophistication, scope, scale, and participants. Balikatan 2025 was the largest ever, 14,000 participants, over 20 nations invested, and Japan's debut as a full participant," Koehler said in his speech during the closing of the Pacific Amphibious Leaders Symposium in Taguig City on Thursday.

"It featured cutting-edge capabilities and a focus on the West Philippine Sea and the Luzon Strait. We test-fired Nemesis missiles, operated amphibious vehicles and (High Mobility Artillery Rocket System) HIMARS, and trained with unmanned systems, and conducted full battle tests and real-world scenarios," he added.

In an interview with reporters after the symposium, Lieutenant General Cederholm, commanding general of the I Marine Expeditionary Force refused to give specific details about the training but he noted that both forces "got great training" using the NMESIS.

"We do and did bring new capabilities to include NMESIS. I had the opportunity to insert NMESIS onto Batanes Island for that.... I won't go into details, because of operational security reasons, but we got great training from our NMESIS batteries that we brought," he said.

"We're always able to hit the target," he added.

Following the Balikatan exercise, the Philippines and US forces also utilized the NMESIS during the KAMANDAG from the word "Kaagapay ng mga Mandirigma ng Dagat", or “Cooperation of the Warriors of the Sea”, an annual bilateral exercise led by the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC) and U.S. Marine Corps which run from may 26 to June 6.

"We're always looking to train to get better. Our readiness can be deeper. Our training can continue to expand. In the words of an old commander of mine, just a great leader and warrior, if you're not getting better, you're getting worse," Cederholm said.

"We seek to get better every day, and that's exactly what our training is aimed to do," he added. Robina Asido/DMS