The US is to provide US$500 million in military funding to the Philippines, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said yesterday, as Washington boosts ties with Manila in the face of China’s growing assertiveness.
Blinken was in Manila with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin as part of an Asia-Pacific tour to strengthen Washington’s latticework of alliances aimed at countering Beijing.
“We’re now allocating an additional US$500 million in foreign military financing to the Philippines to boost security collaboration with our oldest treaty ally in this region,” Blinken told a news conference.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Blinken described it as a “once-in-a-generation investment” to help modernize the Philippine armed forces and coast guard.
“We’re building on a lot of progress the Philippines has already made to be better positioned to defend their sovereignty. That is what this is about,” he said.
Blinken and Austin earlier met with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who has taken a strong stand against Chinese actions in the South China Sea, before holding “2+2” talks with Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo and Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro.
The latest high-level US visit follows a series of escalating confrontations between Philippine and Chinese vessels in the disputed waterway that have raised concern that Washington could be dragged into a conflict due to its mutual defense treaty with Manila.
The additional funding is part of US$2 billion in foreign military financing approved by the US in April.
The Philippines began a modest modernization program more than a decade ago under former Philippine president Benigno Aquino to strengthen its armed forces, one of the weakest in Asia.
It has continued under Marcos, who has also ordered the military to increase their focus on external threats.
Teodoro said the US funds would be used to help secure the Philippines’ “credible deterrent posture,” as it seeks to boost its cybersecurity capabilities among other things.
There has been a revolving door of top US officials passing through the Philippines since Marcos took office in 2022 and adopted a more US-friendly foreign policy.
Marcos expanded an agreement giving US troops access to nine Philippine military bases, including in the far north of the nation, which has infuriated Chinese leaders.
The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) allows US troops to rotate through the bases, and also store defense equipment and supplies at them.
Teodoro said Manila and Washington had agreed to “fully implement” EDCA projects and boost investment in the sites.
The Philippines’ proximity to the hotly contested South China Sea, as well as Taiwan, would make it a key partner for the US if a conflict were to break out in the region.
Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
Marcos told Austin and Blinken that he was “very happy” about the open lines of communication with the US, which helped Manila be “agile in terms of our responses” on issues including the South China Sea.
Blinken and Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) sparred on Saturday over the South China Sea when they met on the sidelines of the ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in Laos.
Wang told Blinken the US should “refrain from fanning the flames, stirring up trouble and undermining stability at sea,” according to a statement.
“The risks and challenges facing China-US relations are still rising,” he said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS