By Jeff Mason and Trevor Hunnicutt and David Brunnstrom
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States and the Philippines reaffirmed their decades-old security alliance on Monday, as President Joe Biden told his counterpart Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that the US commitment to the defense of its ally is “inflexible”, including in the South China Sea, where Manila is under pressure from China.
In his first visit by a Filipino leader to the White House in 10 years, Marcos emphasized the importance of the United States as his country’s ally in a region with “arguably the most complicated geopolitical situation in the world at the moment.”
The trip marks a dramatic turnaround in US-Philippine relations as the two countries look for ways to fight back against what they see as China’s increasingly aggressive actions near Taiwan and in the South China Sea.
US officials said the leaders would agree on new guidelines for stronger military cooperation, as well as stepping up economic cooperation.
“The United States remains steadfast in our commitment to the defense of the Philippines, including the South China Sea,” Biden told Marcos in the Oval Office.
Washington views the Philippines as vital to any effort to contain an invasion of Taiwan by China, which claims the island as its own territory. Manila recently agreed to allow US access to four more of its military bases under an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, but the two sides have not said what US resources will be stationed there.
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