CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — United States servicemen have begun arriving at Lumbia Air Base, one of the nine Philippine military facilities designated under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), for joint training with Philippine troops focused on humanitarian assistance and disaster response.

A bus carrying US servicemen in civilian clothes was seen entering the base on Tuesday, March 10. Photos and videos of their arrival later circulated on social media.

Some of the US personnel were also reportedly seen checking in at several hotels in downtown Cagayan de Oro, signaling the start of the scheduled joint training activities in the area.

Lumbia Air Base, the former civilian airport of the city, was later converted into a Philippine Air Force installation and designated as an EDCA site for joint activities between Philippine and US forces.

Major General Michele Anayron, commanding general of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division, said the visiting troops are in Northern Mindanao to conduct training with Philippine soldiers on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) operations.

According to Anayron, most of the training will take place at Lumbia Air Base, which under EDCA functions as a joint-use facility supporting disaster response and humanitarian missions.

“This training has nothing to do with the West Philippine Sea or the war in Iran. This is purely training,” Anayron said, addressing concerns among some residents that the presence of US troops could draw the area into ongoing geopolitical tensions.

He added that soldiers in Northern Mindanao rarely receive this type of specialized training, which is typically conducted by US forces in Luzon during the annual Balikatan exercises.

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Major Patrick Martinez, spokesperson of the 4th Infantry Division, said the division has previously hosted joint training with foreign troops.

Last year, more than 70 servicemen from the Australian Defence Force trained for a month with soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division in jungle warfare at Camp Kibaritan, a 46,000-hectare military reservation spanning the Bukidnon towns of Kalilangan, Talakag, and Pangantucan.