In Manila, U.S. Defense Secretary Commits to Protecting Philippines

In a press conference in Manila on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sought to reassure Philippine partners that the U.S. is committed to their sovereignty in the South China Sea, and he pushed back on China's claims that America abandons its foreign allies.

The Philippines is one of America's oldest treaty allies in East Asia, and the U.S. has had a hand in its defense since the colonial era. Its territorial integrity is under pressure in its western exclusive economic zone, where Chinese forces are gradually expanding their hold over reefs and waterways in the Spratly Islands. China claims most of the South China Sea under its historical "nine-dash line" policy, and has used increasing levels of force to pursue its claims - including obstructing navigation, ramming, water-cannoning and (on one isolated occasion) hand-to-hand combat.

In the run-up to Hegseth's trip, Chinese officials repeatedly tarred the U.S. as an unreliable partner. "Those who willingly serve as chess pieces [of the U.S.] will be deserted in the end," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun warned the Philippines on Tuesday. Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Wu Qian was more direct, and claimed that America has an "astonishing record of breaking its promises and abandoning its allies."

U.S. officials and policy experts are well aware of this narrative, and some have advised investing more heavily in the Philippines' defense to restore deterrence and prevent China's territorial ambitions from becoming reality.

"China . . . believes it can be combative without a credible response due to limited Philippine capabilities and a lack of U.S. commitment to come to the aid of their treaty ally," cautioned former Trump administration defense official Joseph Felter, writing for The Hill. "The U.S. and the Philippines must not squander this opportunity to strengthen the credibility of their alliance."

In Manila, Hegseth emphasized that President Donald Trump is committed to the alliance with the Philippines. "He and I both want to express the ironclad commitment we have to the Mutual Defense Treaty and to the partnership, economically, militarily, which our staffs have worked on diligently for weeks and weeks and months," Hegseth told Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. "Friends need to stand shoulder to shoulder to deter conflict to ensure that there's free navigation, whether you call it the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea, we recognize that your country has stand very firm in that location and in defense of your nation."