摘要：Although the United States granted independence to the Philippines in 1946, the U.S. military has occupied the nation consistently since 1898. 2 United States troops left the Philippines in 1992, leaving behind a legacy of environmental disaster. 3 But the U.S. soldiers had not gone for good. The U.S. military returned to its former bases in the Philippines the following year to embark on Balikatan, 4 the annual joint military exercises with the Philippine Armed Forces
