From The Straits Times (May 6, 2023): Marcos wraps up US trip with a deeper alliance – and reassurances for China (By Nirmal Ghosh, US Bureau Chief)
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr speaking at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington on May 4. PHOTO: REUTERS
WASHINGTON – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr wrapped up a four-day visit to Washington with a pitch for his country as an investment and economic partner of the United States across a range of fields, and a call for America to renew a preferential tariffs programme for imports from developing nations.
The President said both countries could work together on clean energy, agriculture and food security; digital infrastructure; and critical minerals needed for electric vehicle batteries.
He also laid out plans to collaborate with the US on healthcare and pharmaceuticals – including setting up a virology and vaccine institute in the Philippines.
Speaking on Thursday at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), he called for the renewal of the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP).
The GSP, created by the United Nations in 1974, waived US tariffs on nearly 5,000 products imported from about 120 countries. The Philippines was a major beneficiary, with the duty-free privileges applying to more than 3,500 exports to the US.
But the programme expired at the end of 2020, and congressional approval for its renewal has been held up by, among other issues, arguments over imposing higher labour and environmental standards on beneficiary countries.
President Marcos focused on economic issues in his speech, without once mentioning China.
But during the question-and answer-session, when asked about China, with which the Philippines has had tense stand-offs over disputed maritime territory, he emphasised the importance of keeping lines of communication open.
He said Filipino officials were working on establishing a hotline with China – an idea he had proposed to Chinese President Xi Jinping on a visit to Beijing in January.
“We certainly do not want to cause an incident by misjudgment, by mistake, that will elevate the conflict from what it is now to a higher level,” said Mr Marcos. “That is not the work of a day or a week or a month. It is something that is ongoing.”
That, in his view, “is the only way to keep the levels of confrontation, the levels of misunderstanding, to a manageable level”.
Mr Marcos met US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon on Wednesday.
WASHINGTON – Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr wrapped up a four-day visit to Washington with a pitch for his country as an investment and economic partner of the United States across a range of fields, and a call for America to renew a preferential tariffs programme for imports from developing nations.
The President said both countries could work together on clean energy, agriculture and food security; digital infrastructure; and critical minerals needed for electric vehicle batteries.
He also laid out plans to collaborate with the US on healthcare and pharmaceuticals – including setting up a virology and vaccine institute in the Philippines.
Speaking on Thursday at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), he called for the renewal of the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP).
The GSP, created by the United Nations in 1974, waived US tariffs on nearly 5,000 products imported from about 120 countries. The Philippines was a major beneficiary, with the duty-free privileges applying to more than 3,500 exports to the US.
But the programme expired at the end of 2020, and congressional approval for its renewal has been held up by, among other issues, arguments over imposing higher labour and environmental standards on beneficiary countries.
President Marcos focused on economic issues in his speech, without once mentioning China.
But during the question-and answer-session, when asked about China, with which the Philippines has had tense stand-offs over disputed maritime territory, he emphasised the importance of keeping lines of communication open.
He said Filipino officials were working on establishing a hotline with China – an idea he had proposed to Chinese President Xi Jinping on a visit to Beijing in January.
“We certainly do not want to cause an incident by misjudgment, by mistake, that will elevate the conflict from what it is now to a higher level,” said Mr Marcos. “That is not the work of a day or a week or a month. It is something that is ongoing.”
That, in his view, “is the only way to keep the levels of confrontation, the levels of misunderstanding, to a manageable level”.
Mr Marcos met US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin at the Pentagon on Wednesday.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr (left) with US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin as he arrived at the the Pentagon on May 3. PHOTO: AFP
The Pentagon subsequently released a fact sheet on Bilateral Defence Guidelines established to “modernise alliance cooperation in service of the United States and the Philippines’ shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific region”.
“The guidelines reaffirm that an armed attack in the Pacific, including anywhere in the South China Sea, on either of their public vessels, aircraft, or armed forces – which includes their coast guards – would invoke mutual defence commitments under... (the) US-Philippines Mutual Defence Treaty,” it said. The treaty dates back to 1951.
The US and the Philippines are aiming at a “unity of effort across all areas of bilateral security and defence cooperation to sustain focus on principal regional security concerns”, the fact sheet said.
The Pentagon subsequently released a fact sheet on Bilateral Defence Guidelines established to “modernise alliance cooperation in service of the United States and the Philippines’ shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific region”.
“The guidelines reaffirm that an armed attack in the Pacific, including anywhere in the South China Sea, on either of their public vessels, aircraft, or armed forces – which includes their coast guards – would invoke mutual defence commitments under... (the) US-Philippines Mutual Defence Treaty,” it said. The treaty dates back to 1951.
The US and the Philippines are aiming at a “unity of effort across all areas of bilateral security and defence cooperation to sustain focus on principal regional security concerns”, the fact sheet said.
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The Philippines in April announced that the US would be allowed to use four more of its military bases, bringing the total to nine. Three of the bases under the new agreement are in the northern Philippines, and one is in the south, in Palawan.
US officials have rejected suspicions that the bases could be staging grounds for offensive actions in the contingency of a war over Taiwan.
On Thursday, Mr Marcos maintained that the original idea was to enhance the bases to better deal with frequent natural disasters in the Philippines.
He also said he had assured China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who visited Manila in April, that the bases are not intended to be military bases to attack anyone or any country.
Asked at the dialogue at the CSIS whether the US had requested Philippine troops to join combat operations should war break out between the US and China over Taiwan, Mr Marcos said: “The short answer, is no.”
Defence cooperation, including modernising the Philippine military, has tended to overshadow Mr Marcos’ investment and trade agenda.
“With so much progress so quickly on defence cooperation, both governments entered this week worried about perceptions that the partnership was unbalanced in favour of security,” CSIS analysts wrote in a paper published on Thursday, before Mr Marcos’ speech.
“The Marcos government needs to show tangible benefits of a closer relationship with the US to the Filipino people, especially on the issues he speaks about most often, which include food and energy security, climate change and development,” they wrote.
“The Biden administration rolled out important initiatives on those fronts this week. Those will not stop the complaints... but they do offer real benefits for the Philippines and indicate the rhetoric about a comprehensive alliance is more than just talk.”
Marcos, back in arms of US, is making his own name in foreign policy
Marcos meets Biden in sharp tilt to old ally US while still balancing ties with China
The Philippines in April announced that the US would be allowed to use four more of its military bases, bringing the total to nine. Three of the bases under the new agreement are in the northern Philippines, and one is in the south, in Palawan.
US officials have rejected suspicions that the bases could be staging grounds for offensive actions in the contingency of a war over Taiwan.
On Thursday, Mr Marcos maintained that the original idea was to enhance the bases to better deal with frequent natural disasters in the Philippines.
He also said he had assured China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who visited Manila in April, that the bases are not intended to be military bases to attack anyone or any country.
Asked at the dialogue at the CSIS whether the US had requested Philippine troops to join combat operations should war break out between the US and China over Taiwan, Mr Marcos said: “The short answer, is no.”
Defence cooperation, including modernising the Philippine military, has tended to overshadow Mr Marcos’ investment and trade agenda.
“With so much progress so quickly on defence cooperation, both governments entered this week worried about perceptions that the partnership was unbalanced in favour of security,” CSIS analysts wrote in a paper published on Thursday, before Mr Marcos’ speech.
“The Marcos government needs to show tangible benefits of a closer relationship with the US to the Filipino people, especially on the issues he speaks about most often, which include food and energy security, climate change and development,” they wrote.
“The Biden administration rolled out important initiatives on those fronts this week. Those will not stop the complaints... but they do offer real benefits for the Philippines and indicate the rhetoric about a comprehensive alliance is more than just talk.”
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Broadly, Mr Marcos’ visit to the US is seen as having affirmed and deepened the alliance.
Mr Herman Kraft, convenor of the Strategic Studies Programme at the University of the Philippines, told The Straits Times that the visit was a great success.
“It reinstated the Philippines as a key ally and, perhaps more importantly, broadened the scope of the alliance beyond the usual context of defence,” he said.
Mr Kraft said that from his speech at the CSIS, it was clear Mr Marcos wanted to emphasise the non-defence aspect of his US visit.
“Aside from the evident objective of reassuring China about the nature of the visit, it also reflected the Marcos administration’s concern with economic recovery, food security, and the need to modernise the country’s infrastructure, particularly on energy.”
Asked about the future of the US-Philippines alliance on Wednesday, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink said: “We are exceptionally confident and optimistic.”
“I think you’ll continue to see both through our leader-level engagements and our other engagements at lower levels... further development of the alliance to the benefit of our two peoples and the broader region.”
Why Marcos is inviting the US military back to the Philippines
Biden tells Marcos US commitment for defence of Philippines is ‘ironclad’
Broadly, Mr Marcos’ visit to the US is seen as having affirmed and deepened the alliance.
Mr Herman Kraft, convenor of the Strategic Studies Programme at the University of the Philippines, told The Straits Times that the visit was a great success.
“It reinstated the Philippines as a key ally and, perhaps more importantly, broadened the scope of the alliance beyond the usual context of defence,” he said.
Mr Kraft said that from his speech at the CSIS, it was clear Mr Marcos wanted to emphasise the non-defence aspect of his US visit.
“Aside from the evident objective of reassuring China about the nature of the visit, it also reflected the Marcos administration’s concern with economic recovery, food security, and the need to modernise the country’s infrastructure, particularly on energy.”
Asked about the future of the US-Philippines alliance on Wednesday, US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink said: “We are exceptionally confident and optimistic.”
“I think you’ll continue to see both through our leader-level engagements and our other engagements at lower levels... further development of the alliance to the benefit of our two peoples and the broader region.”
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/marcos-wraps-up-us-trip-with-deepened-alliance-and-reassurances-for-china
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