Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. welcomed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Manila, highlighting the importance of regular and open dialogue between Manila and Washington. This move is particularly significant given the ongoing tensions in the disputed South China Sea.
Since taking office in 2022, Marcos has shifted the Philippines closer to the United States, diverging from the approach of his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte. On Tuesday, he met with Blinken and Austin at Malacañang Palace, where the first-ever “2+2” meetings were held between the two countries. “I am always very pleased that the communication lines are open, so that all the things we do together in relation to our alliance can be continuously assessed and reconsidered, allowing us to respond swiftly,” said Marcos.
Antony Blinken characterized the meetings as a sign of “a stable cadence, a very high level of engagement between our countries.” He added, “We are truly grateful for this partnership.”
The Philippines is among several Southeast Asian nations that assert claims over parts of the South China Sea, where tensions with China have risen significantly over the past year. A central issue in the conflict is the Second Thomas Shoal, located about 200 kilometers from Palawan and more than 1,000 kilometers from China’s Hainan Island. Manila regularly conducts resupply missions to a ship that was stranded there in 1999.
Last month, a Filipino fisherman lost a finger after a confrontation, which Manila described as an “intentional high-speed collision” by the Chinese Coast Guard. While Manila rejected U.S. offers for assistance, they reached a “provisional arrangement” with China to address disagreements, although the details of this arrangement have not been made public.
During the meeting, Blinken and Austin discussed their shared commitment to uphold international law in the South China Sea. They emphasized the U.S.’s “ironclad commitments” to the Philippines under the mutual defense treaty between the two countries.
Blinken and Austin visited Manila after talks with their Japanese counterparts, where they announced an upgrade of the U.S. military command in Japan and labeled China as the “greatest strategic challenge” in the region. This visit also included a meeting among foreign ministers from the Quad grouping, which consists of the U.S., Japan, Australia, and India, condemning China’s actions in the South China Sea.
China has responded critically to statements from Washington and Tokyo, claiming that their activities represent “normal military development and national defense policy.” The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused the Quad of “creating tensions, inciting confrontation, and containing the development of other countries.”
Meanwhile, the Pentagon announced that it would provide $500 million in military funding to the Philippines during the visit, as part of a broader $2 billion aid package for countries in the Asia-Pacific region recognized by the U.S. Congress as “confronting Chinese aggression.”
Additionally, there have been proposals to allocate $128 million for infrastructure enhancements at Philippine bases accessible to American forces under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). Currently, there are nine sites under EDCA, following Manila’s approval last year for the addition of four new locations, including three in the north that are considered particularly significant in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
The U.S. and the Philippines have also been negotiating an intelligence-sharing agreement known as the General Security of Military Information Agreement, which they aim to finalize by the end of 2023, although this has yet to be concluded.