Another US official to visit Manila

From Malaya Business Insight (Mar 6, 2023): Another US official to visit Manila (By Ashzel Hachero)

UNITED States Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland is set to visit the Philippines and Japan from March 6 to 9.

In a brief media advisory, the US State Department said Nuland will hold talks with Philippine officials on how to further strengthen the alliance between the two countries, including “our shared interest in deepening economic, security, and people-to-people ties.”

The State Department also said Nuland will also consult with Philippine officials on the “full range of global issues and meet with civil society and young innovators.”

In Tokyo, the State Department said, Nuland will hold “broad ranging consultations on all key global challenges.”

Nuland’s visit comes amid increasing concerns over China’s aggressive activities in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) in the South China Sea, highlighted in an incident last month when a Chinese Coast Guard ship pointed a “military-grade” laser at a Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) ship on resupply run to Ayungin (Second Thomas) Shoal in the WPS.

On March 4, the PCG said it had spotted Chinese vessels, including a ship under China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy, near Pag-asa Island in the WPS.

Nuland is the latest among US officials to visit Manila, a sign of the turnaround in the relationship between the two close allies under the Marcos administration.

Last month, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also visited Manila and reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to its treaty ally as well as for a free and peaceful Indo-Pacific region.

Washington and Manila are bound by the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty which states that both countries will come to each other’s aid in case of foreign invasion or aggression.

It was Austin’s second visit to Manila, the first being on July 2021.

During his recent visit, the Philippine and US governments announced an expanded US access to military camps in the country under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.

Last year, US Vice President Kamala Harris also visited the Philippines. Harris travelled to Palawan where she met with PCG personnel helping patrol the WPS.

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