발리카탄 2026; Littoral Deep Battle

[위종민]

미군, 일본 육자대, 필리핀, 캐나다가 필리핀 북부 루손 해협에서 연합훈련을 실시했네요. 

Littoral Deep Battle, GPT는 '연안 심층전'이라고 번역했는데, 번역 뉘앙스상으론 '연안 종심전'이 더 어울릴 것 같기도 하네요. 연안에서 상륙군을 타격하는 게 아니라, 3개의 구역에서 동시에 교전을 실시하는 개념인 것 같습니다.

가장 먼 구역에선 드론과 전투기로 교전을 실시했으며, 드론으로 표적을 식별한 뒤 M142 HIMARS에 표적을 전달해 사격을 실시했고, 두 번째 구역에 진입하자 해안에 배치된 지상군이 81mm 박격포, 105mm 야포, USV와 배회탄약 등을 이용해 다음 방어단계에 돌입했고, 최종적으론 소화기를 이용해 해안선에서 교전을 실시했다고 합니다. 훈련중에 적 드론이 해안선 상공에 나타났는데, 미군 스팅어 발사조가 두 차례 사격을 실패했다고... 3번째 사격에선 성공한 모양입니다.  

‘연안 심층전(Littoral Deep Battle)’
인도태평양에서 상륙 침공을 격퇴하기 위한 미 육군의 계획
Aaron-Matthew Lariosa
2026년 5월 5일 오후 6시 14분

필리핀 라오악 — 중국군 수륙양용 보병전투차를 닮은 표적 드론들이 일정한 속도로 라파스 사구를 향해 접근했다. 이후 몇 시간 동안 미국, 필리핀, 캐나다, 일본 병력으로 구성된 연합군은 번갈아가며 모의 상륙 해안을 공격하며, 미 육군이 고안한 상륙 침공 격퇴 계획을 시험했다. 

총성과 연기가 가라앉은 뒤, 미국·일본·필리핀 측 인원들은 해변에 모여 연합 전투 수행 노력을 마무리했다.

일본 제2수륙기동연대 지휘관인 토미노 쇼 대령은 통역을 통해 USNI News에 “미 육군과 필리핀 육군이 정밀하게 훈련을 수행할 수 있는 능력을 갖추고 있다는 점이 자랑스럽다”고 말했다.

동맹국들은 월요일 발리카탄 2026 기간 중 적 상륙 시도를 격퇴하기 위한 대규모 실사격 훈련에서 연합 대침공 능력을 강조했다. 타갈로그어로 “어깨를 맞댄다”는 의미의 미·필리핀 동맹은 최근 몇 년간 외부 위협 대응을 목표로 점점 더 고도화된 활동들을 훈련에 포함시키며 규모를 확대해왔다. 이러한 발리카탄 훈련의 강화는 원래 남중국해에서의 마닐라와 베이징 간 충돌에 대응하기 위한 것이었으나, 이후 대만 유사시에 대한 우려 속에서 연례 군사훈련은 루손 해협 방향으로 더욱 재편되었다.

공식적으로 마닐라는 중국의 잠재적 침공에 맞서 미국의 대만 방어를 지원하는 데 여전히 신중한 입장을 유지하고 있다. 그러나 마닐라는 그러한 분쟁이 북부 영토와 해외 자국민에게 초래할 수 있는 파괴적 결과를 인식하고 있다.

필리핀 정치·군 지도부는 이전에도 분쟁 시 북부 루손의 전략적 중요성을 인정했으며, 양안 충돌 발생 시 자국 입장을 중국이 어떻게 인식할지 우려하고 있다. 올해 발리카탄 훈련에서는 루손 주변의 공습, 군함, 상륙 공격 방어 등 이러한 최악의 시나리오를 다루었다.

루손 해변에서의 ‘연안 심층전’ 리허설

약 800명의 4개국 병력은 발리카탄 북부 대상륙 훈련을 위해 남중국해 방향으로 배치된 태스크포스 라이트닝(Task Force Lightning)에 편성되었다. 연합군은 85㎢ 규모의 라파스 사구 지형 전역의 굴곡과 저지대에 진지를 구축했다. 모든 과정은 각국 군 지휘관들과 주 방어선에서 불과 10~15m 떨어진 관람 텐트에 위치한 12개국 이상의 국제 참관단 감독 아래 진행되었다.

미 육군 제25보병사단이 북부 루손 지상 작전을 지휘하는 동안, 남쪽으로 250마일 이상 떨어진 마닐라 아기날도 캠프 필리핀군(AFP) 본부에 위치한 제1해병원정군(I MEF) 지휘통제팀이 상위 수준 지휘통제를 제공했다.

또한 연합 조정 셀은 필리핀 공군과 AFP 북부루손사령부 전력을 연결했다. 전체적으로 미 육군 부대는 대침공 방어선의 북부와 중부를 담당했고, 미·필리핀 해병대 부대는 보다 남쪽에 배치되었다.

“연안 심층전”으로 명명된 이 개념은 러시아 흑해 함대를 상대로 한 우크라이나 작전 교훈, 심층전 이론, 그리고 동급 경쟁국 대응을 위한 미 육군 최신 교리 야전교범을 결합해 개발되었다고 훈련 현장 인포그래픽은 설명했다.

실사격 훈련은 개념상 적이 해안으로 접근하는 동안 세 개의 다른 구역에서 교전을 포함했다. 적이 해양 심층 구역으로 지정된 방어선 외곽에서 탐지되자, 연합군은 정찰 드론과 전투기를 투입해 적 상륙 전력을 탐지·공격했다.

2026년 5월 4일 훈련 표적과 중국 인민해방군 ZBD-05 상륙장갑차 비교. USNI News 사진 그래픽

두 대의 개념상 수륙양용 상륙 차량과 무인 해상 드론 보트가 실사격 연안 심층전 훈련의 표적으로 사용되었다. 움직이는 표적들의 위장과 형상은 인민해방군 Type 05 수륙양용 전투차량을 모방한 것으로 보였다.

연안 심층전에서 운용된 다양한 드론 중에는 미국 방산업체 Anduril의 Ghost-X도 포함되었다. 이 드론은 훈련 내내 방어선 상공을 조용히 비행하며, 운용자들이 관찰하려는 지역을 향해 카메라를 자주 회전시켰다.

두 명의 미 육군 드론 운용병은 Ghost-X의 조용한 발사·회수 능력과 높은 휴대성을 강조했다. 한 병사에 따르면 두 명이 20~30분 안에 시스템 조립을 완료할 수 있으며, 준비가 끝나면 한 명이 드론을 배치하고 작전 종료 후 회수할 수 있다.

Ghost-X와 다른 무인체계가 상륙 표적을 식별하자, 드론 운용병들은 표적 데이터를 제25보병사단이 최근 도입한 M142 고기동로켓포(HIMARS)에 전달했다. 사격 명령을 받은 뒤 방어선 후방 수백 미터에 위치한 두 대의 발사기는 발사 포드를 해안 방향으로 돌리고 첫 번째 일제사격에서 총 6발의 로켓을 발사했다. 일제발사된 미사일은 낮은 탄도로 상공을 가로질러 해상에 떨어졌다. 이어 HIMARS 승무원들은 적의 대응 사격을 피하기 위해 새로운 위치로 이동했다. 10분 안에 발사기들은 남은 6발의 로켓도 바다로 발사했다.

미국과 필리핀 지도부는 올해 발리카탄과 최근 훈련을 위해 동남아 군도 전역에 전략적으로 HIMARS를 배치했다. 현재 미국 미사일 체계에는 널리 실전 배치된 해상 타격 탄약이 부족하지만, 향후 미사일은 310.7~621.4마일 거리의 함정을 타격할 수 있게 될 예정이다. 이러한 미래 능력을 염두에 두고, 미군 미사일 부대는 분쟁 시 해상 병목지점을 봉쇄하거나 중국 해군 이동을 위협할 수 있다.

HIMARS 일제사격 직후 미·필리핀 병력은 보병분대차량(ISV)이나 도보로 준비된 전투 진지로 돌진했다. 미군은 육군의 신형 XM7 소총과 XM250 경기관총을 장비해, 구형 M16 소총, M60 기관총, RPG 발사기를 사용하는 필리핀 육군·해병대 병력과 뚜렷한 대비를 보였다. 엄폐된 참호 속 병사들은 중기관총과 자동유탄발사기를 해안 방향으로 조준했고, 81mm 박격포와 105mm 포탄이 해상에 떨어졌다. 개념상 적이 두 번째 구역에 진입하자 태스크포스는 해양 근접 구역에서 다음 방어 단계에 돌입했다.

미군의 배회형 탄약과 무인수상정(USV)이 투입되었고, 이는 모의 상륙 차량 주변에 점점 강해지는 포격과 동시에 이루어졌다.

훈련에서 실제 운용된 드론 수는 제한적이었지만, 훈련 기획자들은 이번 활동이 드론 군집, 자폭형 드론, 배회형 탄약에 대한 연안 심층전 개념의 강한 의존성을 보여주기 위한 것이라고 강조했다. 해안 방어 계획에서 미 육군의 드론 의존은 대만과 일본 같은 군도 국가들이 무인체계를 대침공 개념에 통합하는 보다 광범위한 지역적 변화도 반영한다. 미 인도태평양사령부 역시 치명적인 공중·수상·수중 드론 군집을 조율해 90마일 폭의 대만해협을 건너는 상륙함과 상륙정을 저지하는 “헬스케이프(hellscape)” 개념을 추진해왔다. 세 대의 AH-64 아파치 공격헬기도 투입되어 기관포와 로켓으로 모의 상륙 전력을 공격했다.

마지막으로 미 제25보병사단, 일본 수륙기동단, 필리핀 제5보병사단, 캐나다 Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry 병사들로 구성된 보병선이 해변에 설치된 드론 표적과 이동 표적을 향해 지속적인 소화기 및 중화기 사격을 가했다. 이는 해안 구역에서의 연안 심층전 개념 최종 단계였다.

미군과 일본군의 Carl Gustav 무반동포가 방어 진지 곳곳에서 날카로운 발사음을 냈다. 두 개의 준비 진지에서 발사된 중기관총 사격은 드론 보트 주변에 모래를 튀겼고, 결국 보트는 폭발하며 사구 위로 연기를 뿜어냈다.

연안 심층전 계획의 이 단계에서는 압도적인 화력이 해변에 도달한 모든 개념상 적을 산산조각냈다. 총성과 폭발음, 항공기 소음이 사구 전체에 울려 퍼졌다.

사격 중반부에는 무인항공체계(UAS) 그룹 1·2·3을 상징하는 드론 표적이 병력 상공에 나타났다. 방어선은 일부 화력을 드론 쪽으로 돌려 여러 대를 빠르게 격추했다. 그러나 미군 스팅어 휴대용 방공체계 팀은 드론 표적을 향한 두 차례 사격에 실패했다. 마지막 미사일이 표적 드론을 산산조각내며 훈련은 곧 종료되었다.

더 많은 동맹, 더 많은 임무

3시간 동안 이어진 대침공 훈련 종료 후 가장 먼저 사진 촬영에 나선 병력은 일본 육상자위대 수륙기동단 병력 일부였다. 이들은 공보장교들과 철조망 너머로 카메라를 들이대는 현지 언론 앞에서 자랑스럽게 포즈를 취했다. 이 병력은 태평양전쟁 이후 일본이 필리핀에 처음 파견한 전투 병력 1,400명 중 일부였다.

일본 병사들은 곧 미국·필리핀 병력과 함께했고, 결국 대부분의 참가 장비가 포함된 해변 단체 사진 촬영으로 이어졌다. 연안 심층전 훈련 현장의 지휘관들은 이후 팀 집결과 격려 연설에서 이날 활동이 연합 전투 수행 노력의 새로운 단계라고 강조했다.

일본 육상자위대 제2수륙기동연대 지휘관 토미노는 발리카탄 활동이 향후 필리핀군과의 연합 군사훈련에 대한 자신감을 주었다고 말했다. 그는 또한 첫 번째 발리카탄 참가 과정에서 일본 병력과 다른 참가자들 사이에 언어 장벽 등 여러 장애물이 있었다고 언급했다.

토미노는 “우리 파트너 및 동맹들과 양자·다자 훈련을 수행하기 위해서는 언어 장벽 같은 많은 장애물이 존재한다”고 말했다.

필리핀 카가얀 북부 국제공항에서 발리카탄 2026 기간 중 바타네스 제도 해양 핵심 지형 확보 작전을 위해 투입 준비 중인 필리핀 해병대 Force Reconnaissance Group 소속 제68해병중대 병력. 2026년 4월 26일. 미 해병대 사진

해변에서 미 육군 제25보병사단장 James Bartholomees 소장은 병력을 모아 훈련 중 활약한 HIMARS 승무원들을 치하했다. 미 육군과 하와이 주둔 제25보병사단이 루손 해변 방어에 나선 것이 처음은 아니지만, 다층 미사일 화력과 드론 활용은 중국과의 잠재적 분쟁을 억제·대비하기 위한 미 육군 노력에서 새로운 전환점을 의미한다.

제25보병사단 포병사령관 Daniel VonBenken 대령은 국방부 보도자료에서 “이번 훈련은 현대적 지휘통제 네트워크로 강화된 연합 합동군의 치명성을 보여준다”고 말했다.

개최국 입장에서 AFP 공보실장 Xerxes Trinidad 대령은 USNI News에 이번 대상륙 훈련이 마닐라 방어 노력에서 다자 동맹과 발리카탄의 가치를 보여주었다고 말했다.

Trinidad는 “발리카탄에서 매우 분명한 한 가지는 함께 일하고 함께 더 강해진다는 점이다. 이번 훈련에서 보는 것은 단순한 상호운용성이 아니다. 같은 생각을 가진 국가들이 함께하고, 함께 싸우며, 더 강해지는 것”이라고 말했다.

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa
Aaron-Matthew Lariosa는 워싱턴 DC 기반 프리랜서 국방 전문 기자다.

Littoral Deep Battle: The Army’s Plan to Defeat an Amphibious Invasion - USNI News

Littoral Deep Battle: The Army’s Plan to Defeat an Amphibious Invasion - USNI News

‘Littoral Deep Battle’

The Army’s Plan to Defeat an Amphibious Invasion in the Indo-Pacific

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa

May 5, 2026 6:14 PM

LAOAG, Philippines — Target drones resembling Chinese amphibious infantry fighting vehicles approached the La Paz Sand Dunes at a steady pace. In the next few hours, a combined force of American, Philippine, Canadian and Japanese troops took turns tearing into the simulated beach landing, trialing a plan devised by the U.S. Army to defeat amphibious invasions.

Once the gunfire and smoke subsided, American, Japanese and Philippine counterparts gathered on the beach, culminating their combined warfighting efforts.

“I am proud that the U.S. Army and Philippine Army have the capability to conduct training meticulously,” Col. Tomino Sho, the commanding officer of Japan’s 2nd Amphibious Rapid Deployment Regiment, said through a translator to USNI News.

The allies highlighted their combined anti-invasion capabilities on Monday during a major live-fire exercise designed to repel an enemy landing attempt at Balikatan 2026. Translating from Tagalog to “shoulder-to-shoulder,” the U.S.-Philippine alliance has expanded the drills in recent years to include increasingly sophisticated activities geared against external threats. These upgrades to Balikatan were originally in response to South China Sea spats between Manila and Beijing, but the annual series of military exercises were further reoriented toward the Luzon Strait amid concerns of a Taiwan contingency.

Officially, Manila remains apprehensive about assisting the U.S. in defending Taiwan against a potential Chinese invasion. However, Manila has recognized the devastating consequences such a conflict could inflict on its northern territories and overseas citizens.

Philippine political and military leadership previously acknowledged the strategic significance of Northern Luzon in a conflict and is concerned about how China will perceive how its position in the event of cross-strait hostilities. Exercises during this year’s Balikatan tackled these worst case scenarios, including defending against air attacks, warships and amphibious assaults, around Luzon.

Rehearsing a Littoral Deep Battle on the Beaches of Luzon

Approximately 800 troops from four different nations found themselves grouped under Task Force Lightning, arrayed toward the South China Sea for Balikatan’s northern counter-landing event. The combined force took up positions across the contours and depressions of the 85-square-kilometer area that comprised the La Paz Sand Dunes. All of this was supervised by military chiefs from their respective nations and more than a dozen international observers from a viewing tent pitched within 10 to 15 meters of the main defensive line.

While the U.S. Army’s 25th Infantry Division took charge on the ground in Northern Luzon, a I Marine Expeditionary Force command and control team located more than 250 miles south at the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarters at Camp Aguinaldo, Manila, provided higher-level command and control.

A combined coordination cell also tied together units from the Philippine Air Force and across the AFP’s Northern Luzon Command. Overall, U.S. Army units were responsible for the northern and central portions of the anti-invasion line while U.S. and Philippine Marine Corps units were deployed further south.

Dubbed “Littoral Deep Battle,” the concept was developed by the U.S. Army by combining lessons from Ukraine’s operations against Russia’s larger Black Sea Fleet, deep battle theory and the service’s recent field manuals that form its doctrine against peer adversaries, according to infographics displayed at the counter-landing event.

The live-fire drills included engagements at three different zones as the notional enemy approached the surf. Once the attack was detected at the edge of the defensive line at an area designated as the maritime deep zone, forces launched reconnaissance drones and fighter jets to detect and attack enemy landing forces.

A target during the May 4, 2026, exercise compared to a Chinese People’s Liberation Army ZBD-05 landing craft. USNI News photo illustration 

Two notional amphibious landing vehicles and a maritime drone boat represented as the targets during the live-fire Littoral Deep Battle. The camouflage and shape of the moving targets appeared to mimic the People’s Liberation Army’s Type 05 amphibious fighting vehicles.

Among the various drones launched during Littoral Deep Battle was Ghost-X, a system made by American defense contractor Anduril. The drone quietly flew over the defensive lines throughout the exercise, frequently turning as it positioned its camera toward the areas its operators wanted to view.

Two U.S. Army drone operators highlighted Ghost-X’s silent launch and recovery and portability. According to one soldier, the system could be assembled by two people within 20 to 30 minutes. Once prepared, a single person could position the drone and carry it away following operations.

Once Ghost-X and other unmanned systems identified the amphibious targets, the drone operators relayed targeting data information to the 25th Infantry Division’s recently acquired M142 High Mobility Rocket Artillery Systems (HIMARS). After receiving their fire orders, two launchers a few hundred meters to the rear of the defensive line slewed their launching pods toward the coast and rippled off a total of six rockets in their first salvo. The ripple-fired missiles flew overhead at a depressed trajectory and slammed into the waters offshore. A brief pause ensued as the HIMARS crews repositioned to a new firing location to avoid adversary counterfire. Within 10 minutes, the launchers emptied their remaining six rockets into the sea.

U.S. and Philippine leadership have strategically positioned HIMARS throughout the Southeast Asian archipelago for this year’s Balikatan and recent exercises. While the American missile system currently lacks a widely fielded munition capable of conducting maritime strikes, upcoming missiles will allow the launcher to target ships at ranges between 310.7 to 621.4 miles away. With these future capabilities in mind, American missile forces could lock down maritime chokepoints or threaten Chinese naval movements in the event of a conflict.

A few moments after launching the HIMARS salvos, U.S. and Philippine troops rushed toward prepared fighting positions in Infantry Squad Vehicles or on foot. American troops – equipped with the Army’s new XM7 rifles and XM250 light machine guns – greatly contrasted their Philippine Army and Marine Corps counterparts, who were armed with older M16 assault rifles, M-60 machine guns and rocket propelled grenade launchers. Soldiers in covered dugouts oriented their heavy machine guns and an automatic grenade launcher towards the surf as 81mm mortar and 105mm artillery rounds hit the water. As the notional enemy entered the second zone, the task force began the next phase of its defensive operations in the maritime close area.

American loitering munitions and unmanned surface vessels (USV) deployed, coinciding and completing the increasingly intense artillery fire splashing around the simulated amphibious assault vehicles.

While a limited number of drones deployed during the drills, exercise planners stressed that the activity was meant to demonstrate Littoral Deep Battle’s heavy emphasis on drone swarms, one-way attack drones and loitering munitions. The Army’s reliance on drones in this coastal defense plan reflects a broader regional shift by archipelagic states – such as Taiwan and Japan – in integrating unmanned assets with anti-invasion concepts. U.S. Indo-Pacific Command has also pushed for unmanned littoral defense via a “hellscape” concept, which would coordinate swarms of lethal aerial, surface and subsurface drones to stymie amphibious ships and landing craft from reaching across the 90-mile-wide Taiwan Strait. Three AH-64 Apache attack helicopters also flew in to strafe the simulated landing force with cannon fire and rockets.

Finally, an infantry line composed of soldiers from the American 25th, Japanese Amphibious Readiness Brigade, Philippine 5th Infantry Division and the Canadian Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry fired sustained small arms and crewed weapons at target drones and moving practice targets set up along the beach. This marked the final phase of the Littoral Deep Battle concept in the coastal zone.

Rapid and sharp snaps from American and Japanese Carl Gustav recoilless rifles occasionally sounded across the defensive positions. Heavy machine gun bursts from two prepared positions kicked up sand as they raked a drone boat, which eventually blew up and billowed smoke across the dunes.

At this point in the Littoral Deep Battle plan, an overwhelming torrent of fires ripped apart any notional enemies that made it to the beach. The cacophony of gunfire, explosions and aircraft reverberated across the dunes.

Halfway through the firing, drone targets representing unmanned aerial system groups 1, 2 and 3 appeared over the troops. The defensive line shifted some of its fire towards the drones, downing several in quick succession. However, American Stinger man portable air defense system teams missed two shots against a drone target. The final missile tore the target drone apart, with the exercise concluding shortly after.

More Allies, More MissionsAt the conclusion of the three-hour anti-invasion exercise, the first troops to begin posing for photos were the limited contingent of Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) Amphibious Rapid Readiness Brigade soldiers. They proudly posed for their public affair officers, as well as local media attempting to angle their cameras over the barbed wire. These forces were a fraction of the 1,400 troops Tokyo sent for its first combat troop deployment to the Philippines since the Pacific War.

The Japanese soldiers were slowly joined by their American and Philippine counterparts, culminating in a photo opportunity on the beach that involved most of the participating equipment. Leaders present at the Littoral Deep Battle exercise resolved to their troops in the ensuing team huddles and pep talks that the day’s activities represented a new phase of their combined warfighting efforts.

Sho, the commanding officer of the JGSDF’s 2nd Amphibious Rapid Deployment Regiment, said that Balikatan’s activities gave him confidence in future joint military training with the Philippine military. Tomino also highlighted that there were obstacles for the first iteration of Balikatan, specifically noting a language barrier between Japanese troops and the exercise’s participants.

“It is so that there are many barriers, such as language barriers, to conduct bilateral and multilateral exercises with our partners and our allies,” Tomino said.

Philippine marines with 68th Marine Company, Force Reconnaissance Group, prepare to insert into the Batanes island chain for maritime key terrain security operations during Exercise Balikatan 2026 at Cagayan North International Airport, Lal-lo, Philippines, April 26, 2026. US Marine Corps photo

On the beach, Maj. General James Bartholomees, the commander of the U.S Army 25th Infantry Division, gathered his troops and highlighted the HIMARS crew chiefs in their efforts during the exercise. While this was not the first time the U.S. Army and the Hawaii-based 25th Infantry Division have defended a Luzon beach, the layered missile fire and drone use marks a new turn for the service in its efforts to deter and prepare for a potential conflict against China in the first island chain.

“This exercise showcases the lethality of our combined joint force when empowered by a modern command and control network,” U.S. Army Col. Daniel VonBenken, the commander of the 25th’s divisional artillery, said in a Pentagon news release covering the exercise.

From the host nation perspective, AFP Public Affairs Chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad told USNI News that the counter-landing exercise demonstrated the value of multilateral alliances and Balikatan in Manila’s defensive efforts.

“Basically one thing’s very clear about Balikatan: it’s about working together and being together stronger. These particular alliances, this particular partnership, what you see in the exercise is not just about interoperability. It’s about being with these like-minded nations together, fighting together and stronger,” Trinidad said.

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa is a freelance defense journalist based in Washington, D.C.