MANILA, Philippines – A team of cyber professionals and an intelligence analyst from the Guam National Guard attended Balikatan 2025, participating in the three-week Cyber Defense Exercise alongside teams from various nations.
On the Guam Guard’s team were members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Reservists – longtime teammates and partners for more than 20 years through the Department of Defense National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program. The Guam Guard and AFP team trained alongside active component forces, including the U.S. Army, Marines and Air Force, and other participating countries.
During the exercise, nearly 200 participants divided into seven teams showcased their ability to conduct defensive cyber operations in a training environment that included identifying cyber vulnerabilities, hunting and finding threats and making recommendations to mitigate or defeat those threats. After three weeks of evaluation, the Guam Guard and AFP Reserve team ranked second overall.
Of all the evaluated Mission Essential Tasks, the team achieved its highest scores in the categories of Crew Operations and Protection Actions. Sgt. 1st Class Celine Taitano, team lead for the Guard, said the high scores reflected the close relationships and interoperability between the Armed Forces of the Philippines Reservists and the Guam Guard.
“The biggest takeaway for me was the high level of technical capability from the Philippines Reservists,” Taitano said. “I don’t know if it’s because they recently went to training, or because they are technically proficient from their civilian jobs – but they are highly skilled, and I really enjoyed working alongside them. They also have a hospitality culture like ours, and they always made sure we had food.”
Sgt. Edward Acda, information technology specialist for the Guam Guard, agreed.
“We learned a lot from our Philippine Reservist Counterparts,” Acda said. “Some of them do this every day in their civilian jobs, so we learned how to use some of the tools available to us at an even higher level.”
Lt. Col. Vern Perez, cyber law expert, and Sgt. Avery Tyquiengco, an intelligence analyst with the Guam Guard, worked with the Cyber Team.
“There are bad guys on the network doing bad things,” Tyquiengco said. “It takes a team effort from intelligence, legal and cyber operators to defend the network because they help guide each other and prioritize our efforts.”
Tyquiengco, who is also a community advocate and volunteer outside of the Guard, related the importance of this mission on a personal level.
“It was great to be able to assist those who also serve their community in the Philippines,” Tyquiengco said. “As Guardsmen and Reservists in the First and Second Island Chains, it’s important that we can face these challenges together.”