US defense chief Hegseth reaffirms ‘iron clad’ commitment to PH amid China threat

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'Deterrence is necessary around the world, but specifically in this region, in your country, considering the threats from the communist Chinese,' US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth tells President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during a courtesy call in Malacañang

MANILA, Philippines – US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday, March 28, reaffirmed Washington’s “iron clad” commitment to Manila amid continued threats from China.

“Deterrence is necessary around the world, but specifically in this region, in your country, considering the threats from the communist Chinese,” Hegseth told President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during a courtesy call on the Philippine leader in Malacañang.

Malacañang said Hegseth’s courtesy call on Marcos was focused on “strengthening alliances and partnerships toward a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

The US official, who was on a one-day visit to the long-time American treaty-ally, also stressed the longstanding alliance between the two countries.

The Philippines is the first country in the region that Hegseth has visited as US President Donald Trump’s defense chief. 

While in Manila, Hegseth exercised with Philippine and American soldiers, as well as Armed Forces of the Philippines chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. He also met with Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.

Hegseth’s Manila will be swift. He flew in late Thursday, March 27, and will be flying out also on the 28th to make it to the 80th Anniversary of the Battle of Iwo Jima in Japan.  

But the US defense chief’s itinerary is quite telling — he first stopped by the Indo-Pacific Command (Indopacom) in Hawaii, then US territory and defense stronghold Guam, before heading to US allies Manila and Tokyo. All four stops are valuable to Washington’s strategy in the Indo-Pacific. 

“This visit highlights the importance of the US-Philippine Alliance and our ironclad commitment as friends, partners, allies dedicated to ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific safe, strong, prosperous,” said US ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Carlson in a tweet late March 27. 

Hegseth inherited a bilateral defense relationship that flourished under his predecessor, Lloyd Austin. Under Austin, former president Joe Biden’s defense chief, Manila added four new bases to the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which allows the US to preposition its assets in select locations in the Philippines. 

It was also under Austin that the US pledged $500 million in foreign military financing, on top of the money it had already spent to develop EDCA bases. A handful more milestones also took place — the issuance of Bilateral Defense Guidelines; Washington’s hosting of a trilateral leaders summit between the US, the Philippines, and Japan; and the signing of the General Security of Military Information Agreement, among others. 

Hegseth, as well as other top US government officials under Trump, has said that America’s commitment to its former colony, the Philippines, remains “ironclad.” 

Yet there had been worries about just what “ironclad” means, as the US under Trump upends long-established alliances and stances. Trump has either waged or threatened trade wars against the European Union, and neighbors Canada and Mexico. At the same time, the US has aligned itself with Russia in Moscow’s war on Ukraine. 

American leaders’ disdain for Europe was especially apparent in the aftermath of a mess that’s haunted Hegseth just as he started his Indo-Pacific sojourn — their use of the encrypted chat app Signal to provide real-time and highly sensitive details about imminent US strikes on Yemen. – With a report from Reuters/Rappler.com