Marcos at Pentagon: Thanks for help vs threats

FOR STRONGER ‘DETERRENCE’ President Marcos is welcomed by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth with an honor guard at the Pentagon onMonday.—Presidential Communications Office photo

WASHINGTON DC — To open his three-day visit here, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. hailed Manila’s security alliance with Washington as a major factor in “preserving the peace and stability of the South China Sea,” a line echoed by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as he received the Philippine leader at the Pentagon.

In remarks delivered after being welcomed by Hegseth with an honor guard, Marcos thanked the Trump administration for its “continuing support that we feel and that we need in the face of the threats our country is facing.”

It was Marcos’ first official meeting for the visit and second meeting with Hegseth. The two officials earlier met when the US defense chief visited the Philippines in March.

Marcos said Manila’s alliance with Washington had “formed a great part in terms of preserving the peace, in terms of preserving the stability of the South China Sea.”

In response, Hegseth said the two allied nations, “[u]nder President Trump and your leadership, [have] made rapid progress in enhancing real deterrence and upholding a free and open Asia-Pacific.”

Citing examples of support provided by Washington in recent years, he said, “We’re also deploying new cutting-edge missiles and unmanned systems and revitalizing our defense industrial bases.”

‘Priority theater’

“Together, we must forge a strong shield of real deterrence for peace, ensuring the long-term security and prosperity for our nations,” Hegseth said.

Both officials made no direct mention of China even as they referenced the tensions in the South China Sea due to Beijing’s expansionist claims, its buildup of artificial islands and fortification of strategic reefs, and its aggressive actions toward Philippine civilian, naval and coast guard vessels.

Marcos and Hegseth again cited the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty binding the Philippines and the United States to each other’s defense in the event of an armed attack.

Hegseth said, “This pact extends to armed attacks on our armed forces, aircraft, or public vessels, including our Coast Guards, anywhere in the Pacific, including the South China Sea.”

He also mentioned the most recent Balikatan joint military exercises in May and the ongoing Talisman Saber exercise in Australia that was joined by the US and Philippine forces.

Meeting with Rubio

Later in the day, Marcos also met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

In a statement, US Department of State spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the two officials “reaffirmed their shared commitment to deterrence and reinforcing freedoms of navigation and overflight in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Rubio and Mr. Marcos also “discussed efforts to advance the United States’ and the Philippines’ shared prosperity, including through the Luzon Economic Corridor, by strengthening supply chains and delivering economic growth to both countries,” Bruce said. —With reports from Gabryelle Dumalag and Inquirer Research