U.S. troops learn basics of jungle soldiering

Deep in the flatlands of northern Philippines' Bulacan province, a Philippine Army instructor sets a makeshift snake trap close to a burrow in the ground. Moments later, the snare springs as a metre-and-a-half-long cobra slithers violently inside the trap made up mainly of bamboo slivers.

The instructor grabs the serpent before cutting its head off as the cold blood of the reptile gushes out of the severed portion.

"This is how you quench your thirst in the jungle," the instructor told American soldiers watching eagerly before taking the snake's blood into his mouth.

"We could have made an adobo (a native garlic-vinegar stew preparation) from this snake if we weren't in the field, but instead we'll cook it in open fire," the instructor jokingly said.

The scene was a demonstration by a Philippine Army training sergeant inside Camp Tecson, the sprawling Army Scout Rangers' training ground located some 76 kilometres northeast of the capital, Manila.

American soldiers are learning the basics of jungle soldiering from their Philippine counterparts as part of the annual 'Balance Piston' exercises.

Aside from snakes, the Americans were taught how to snare lizards and other small animals using only their combat boot laces and bamboo sticks.

Some of the Americans, a few of whom saw action in the 1991 Gulf War, were hesitant to take a morsel from the roasted animals. But after taking a bite, quite a few acquired a taste for local field cuisine.

"Tastes like chicken," said one trooper, after eating roasted snake. "This is truly a learning experience for us, we were never taught jungle survival like this back in the States," said U.S. Army Special Forces Maj. Kevin Melcolier.

Melcolier is among the more than 100 U.S. Army soldiers from the First Special Forces Group based in Washington taking part in the exercises in northern Philippines.

The military drill, held annually, had attracted little attention from both local and foreign press, as well as controversy from anti-American groups, compared to joint U.S.-Republic of the Philippines (RP) war exercises down south in Zamboanga City and Basilan province.

Melcolier's group is now on the fourth week of their exercises with their Filipino counterparts, the Army Scout Rangers.

While the U.S. Army, considered as one of the most combat-ready armed forces in the world, has facilities in the United States for training its soldiers in desert and urban conventional fighting, it relatively has few experiences in fighting against a guerrilla army in tropical conditions such as that in the Philippines, according to one American soldier.

"The last time the Americans fought a guerrilla campaign in the tropics was in Vietnam, and we all know that they lost in that war," said a local military analyst adding that knowledge in jungle survival is basic in unconventional warfare such as that fought by guerrillas.

Filipinos, who had fought guerrilla campaigns against the communists and Muslim separatist groups in the south for more than six decades, by far exceed the Americans in terms of experience in jungle combat.

Elite Filipino Scout Ranger troopers are known to survive for days on a pack of biscuits and have knowledge on "living off the land".

Col Danilo Lim, deputy commander of the First Scout Ranger Regiment, said survival training is normal for the Scout Rangers, who are also known to stay hidden in the jungles for weeks during operations against rebels and bandits.

Melcolier described Philippine troops as "very professional, disciplined and well trained and motivated", adding "they just need more equipment".

In exchange for the transfer of knowledge on jungle warfare, the Americans trained local troops in handling newer weapons, such as sniper rifles that could take a man down from a distance of 1.5 km, night vision equipment and motion detectors, among others.

"The Americans, aside from familiarising local troops on these new weapon's basic operations, also teach new tactics that go along with adopting to the new capabilities that the military equipment offers," said Capt. Benjamin Hao of the Army's Civil Affairs department.

"For instance, you cannot use normal squad deployment tactics when using night vision goggles," he pointed out. The new weapons brought in by the Americans as early as last year, are expected to be used against the extremist group Abu Sayyaf which is based in Basilan and Sulu islands.

Critics of the government's open policy to the U.S. military have assailed President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's liberal policy towards the U.S. troops saying the Americans stand to gain more knowledge from the battle-scarred Filipino soldier than the latter from the U.S. troops.

"It is not a matter of who is learning more from whom. But we need new technology to combat extremist groups who are increasingly using unconventional means of fighting, such as hostage-taking, to get their message across," another Filipino Army officer said.

Both Washington and Manila are optimistic that given the Filipino soldiers wide experience in fighting a guerrilla war and new tactics and equipment from their U.S. counterparts, the combination will spell a difference in combating the nagging menace that is the Abu Sayyaf.

"For years we have fought the Abu Sayyaf with whatever weapons and equipment we have. In most cases the bandits have better weapons than us. But still we were able to cut down their numbers from an estimated 3,000 last year to some 300 this year," Hao said.

Hao cited the case of the recently-formed Light Reaction Unit of the Army based in Zamboanga City. "The unit was trained by Americans last year and were better armed compared to the average Philippine Army company and they proved effective in combating the Abu Sayyaf despite their small size," he said.

"We have to understand that we are fighting a ground war where the equipment and skill of the man fighting given more emphasis compared to other weapons such as artillery and aircraft.

A bombardment similar to that carried out by Americans in Afghanistan would only scare the populace and would hardly be able to do any harm to the Abu Sayyaf hidden by thick jungle company and caves," Hao said.

The Balance Piston exercise is expected to end today, the same day when actual military drill is due to commence in Zamboanga City between troops of both countries.