Biden: Any attack on PH aircraft, vessels invokes Mutual Defense Treaty
Any attack on Philippine aircraft, vessels, or its military in the South China Sea would invoke the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), United States President Joe Biden said.
Biden stressed this as he reiterated the United States’ iron clad defense commitments to Japan and the Philippines during their trilateral summit in Washington DC.
“I want to be clear, the United States defense commitments to Japan and the Philippines are iron clad. As I’ve said before, any attack on Philippine aircraft, vessels, or Armed Forces in the South China Sea would invoke our Mutual Defense Treaty,” Biden said at the opening of the first trilateral summit.
Biden described the Philippines and Japan as friends and partners, bound by a shared vision and pursuit of a peaceful, stable, and prosperous Indo-pacific.
The MDT between the Philippines and the United States, signed in 1951, serves as a foundation for the close security cooperation between the two countries. It was enhanced by the 1998 Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
The VFA provides the legal basis and status protection for US military and its civilian personnel in the Philippines on official business.
EDCA, on the other hand, authorizes US forces access to agreed locations in the Philippines on a rotational basis, for security cooperation exercises, joint and combined military training activities, and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief activities.
President Marcos said challenges to international rules-based order in the Indo-pacific region require “concerted efforts on everyone’s part.”
“Facing the complex challenges of our time requires concerted efforts on everyone’s part, a dedication to a common purpose, and an unwavering commitment to the rules-based international order,” Marcos said in his opening statement at the trilateral meeting.
Aside from giving their commitment to defense and maritime cooperation, the US and Japan also expressed their full adherence to helping the Philippines advance its efforts in addressing climate change and further boost its economy to create industries and more jobs for Filipinos.