MANILA: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday (Mar 19) that the United States stands by its “ironclad” commitments to defend longtime ally the Philippines against armed attack in the South China Sea.
Blinken’s visit to Manila is his second since Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos took office in 2022 and is part of a brief Asia tour to reinforce US support for regional allies against China.
Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea, brushing aside competing claims from several Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines, and an international ruling that has declared its stance baseless.
Blinken’s renewed defence pledge follows recent incidents involving Philippine and Chinese vessels near disputed reefs off the Southeast Asian country’s coast, including collisions.
“These waterways are critical to the Philippines, to its security, to its economy, but they’re also critical to the interests of the region, the United States and the world,” Blinken said at a joint press conference with his Philippine counterpart Enrique Manalo.
“That’s why we stand with the Philippines and stand by our ironclad defence commitments, including under the mutual defence treaty.”
After Blinken’s remarks, China said the United States has “no right” to interfere in the South China Sea.
“The United States is not a party to the South China Sea issue and has no right to interfere in maritime issues that are between China and the Philippines,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular press conference.
Blinken’s trip comes ahead of a trilateral meeting in Washington next month between US President Joe Biden, Marcos and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Announcing the three-way summit with the Asia-Pacific allies, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the leaders would push a “shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific”.
In his meeting with Marcos, Blinken said the alliance between the United States and the Philippines was “more than rock solid” and was “an absolute priority for President Biden”.
Source: CNA
