U.S. and Philippine marines wait at the airport of the Philippines' northernmost town of Itbayat, Batanes province during a joint military exercise on Monday, May 6, 2024. American and Filipino marines held annual combat-readiness exercises called Balikatan, Tagalog for shoulder-to-shoulder, in a show of allied military readiness in the Philippines' northernmost town facing southern Taiwan. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)