United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has said the US and the Philippines must stand “shoulder to shoulder” against China in a meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos.
Hegseth, who is under scrutiny at home over his role in the accidental leaking of US strikes on Yemen to a journalist, arrived in Manila on Friday for the first stop on a tour of Asia Pacific allies.
“Peace through strength is a very real thing,” Hegseth said in a meeting with Marcos at Malacanan Palace in Manila.
“Deterrence is necessary around the world, but specifically in this region, in your country, considering the threats from the communist Chinese and that 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 recognise that your country has [to] stand very firm in that location and in defence of your nation,” Hegseth added.
Marcos said Hegseth’s visit sent a “very strong message” of the allies’ commitment to bolster their alliance.
The defence chief’s first trip to Asia comes as the administration of US President Donald Trump is seeking to rally allies in the region to counter China’s rising power and influence.
The visit also comes amid evaluated tensions between China and the Philippines over Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea.
On Monday, Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro called Beijing’s claim to more than 90 percent of the waterway “the biggest fiction and lie”.
Teodoro’s remarks came on the same day that the Philippine coastguard reported the latest in a series of recent confrontations with Chinese vessels in the Scarborough Shoal.
After wrapping up his trip to the Philippines on Saturday, Hegseth will travel to Japan, another key US treaty ally.
While in Japan, he is scheduled to hold talks with Japanese Defence Minister Gen Nakatani and attend a memorial service for servicemen killed during World War II’s Battle of Iwo Jima.
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