US President Joe Biden affirmed that Washington is ready to defend the Philippines from any attack in the contested South China Sea amid growing maritime tensions between Manila and Beijing.
“Any attack on Philippine aircraft, vessels or armed forces in the South China Sea would invoke our mutual defence treaty,” Biden said as he hosted the first-ever joint summit with the Philippines and Japan at the White House.
During a state visit to Washington by Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, he and US President Joe Biden committed to enhancing their defence collaboration to address potential threats from China.
Their discussions led to the announcement of several initiatives, including the expansion of an air defence system that will also involve Australia, and the inclusion of a Japanese astronaut in NASA‘s Artemis moon missions, marking the first time a non-American will step on the lunar surface.
In a statement from the White House’s Rose Garden, Biden emphasized the significance of these agreements as a major advancement in the US-Japan alliance.
The talks, which lasted around two hours, predominantly covered defence strategies in the Indo-Pacific region, the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, and concerns over North Korea, Taiwan, and China.
Kishida stressed the importance of upholding an international order grounded in the rule of law and firmly rejected any forceful or coercive attempts to alter the status quo.
