U.S. and Philippine warships trained together in the South China Sea on Friday, two days before Manila accused Beijing of dangerous maneuvers by vessels there.
A flotilla of US, Australian and Japanese warships recently trained together in the South China Sea, an operation that coincided with several large-scale exercises underway in the region.
A service member died at a US military base in Japan, and another was seriously injured over the Christmas holiday, according to military spokespeople.