US to stay ‘laser-focused’ on PH-China maritime issues

WASHINGTON — The Philippines will continue to enjoy support from the United States, with more attention given to the South China Sea issue even as President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House this month, US officials told foreign journalists in a recent briefing.

They also said that recent Chinese acts of aggression in the West Philippine Sea have led to ongoing discussions to review the 1951 Philippine-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), which encourages the two security allies to come to each other’s aid in case of an armed attack.

READ: West PH Sea: Philippines recovers suspected Chinese submarine drone

The officials, who asked not to be identified, held the briefing for foreign journalists, including this Inquirer reporter, during a media tour last month in Washington, DC, and New York organized by the Konrad-Adenauer Foundation.

According to the diplomatic insiders, with the appointment of “China hawks” like Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. Michael Waltz of Florida as secretary of state and national security adviser, respectively, the Trump administration is expected to remain “laser-focused” on the conflicting maritime claims between China and its neighbors, including the Philippines.

The South China Sea issue will also get more attention, as typified by “late night” meetings held at the White House following reports of Philippine vessels being harassed, rammed, or hit with water cannons by the China Coast Guard (CCG).

As one of them put it, outgoing US President Joe Biden has “invested [in] the alliance” between the Philippines and the United States since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is seen as “someone who wants to strengthen the alliance.”

‘Ironclad’ ties

In 2023, Biden used “ironclad” on several occasions to describe the alliance between the two countries. He again reiterated the United States’ commitment to the MDT when he met with Marcos at the White House in April last year, saying the treaty extends to armed attacks on Philippine forces, public vessels, or aircraft in the Pacific, including anywhere in the South China Sea.

Another US official recalled how the June 17, 2024, confrontation between the Philippine Navy and CCG had White House observers particularly worried. This was when Chinese personnel wielding knives and axes surrounded and verbally threatened a Philippine Navy team in rubber boats. One of the Filipino sailors lost a thumb after his boat was rammed by Chinese vessels.

That incident alone “could have turned into something,” the official said. Another described it as a “terrible situation.”

In August, National Maritime Council spokesperson Alexander Lopez, a former chief of the Western Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, which has jurisdiction over the West Philippine Sea, said it was time for Manila and Washington to review the MDT.

Lopez said this was necessary to make the treaty “relevant to the new security challenges” in the region.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. also expressed the same view, saying that a review must be made to broaden the treaty’s definition of an “armed attack.”

‘Continuing desire’

During a phone call with Trump in November, Marcos said he spoke about his “continuing desire” to see the country’s alliance with the United States endure under the incoming US president’s term.

The president told reporters at that time that the “relationship between our two countries [is one] that is as deep as can possibly be — because it has been for a very long time.”

 

(2025/01/06-05:30)