Biden reassures Philippines' Marcos amid China tensions

US President Joe Biden has reaffirmed his country's "ironclad" commitment to the security of the Philippines, as he hosted Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the White House on Monday.

"The United States also remains ironclad in our commitment to the defense of the Philippines, including in the South China Sea, and we will continue to support the Philippines military modernization," Biden said.

Biden's statement comes at a time when China is increasingly expanding into the trade routes and strategic islands of the South China Sea. The US sees the Philippines as a crucial ally to counter China's aggression and expand its military presence in the region.

Marcos said the Philippines is currently situated in a region with the most "complicated geopolitical situation" globally, calling the current situation "difficult times."

"So it is only natural for the Philippines to look to its sole treaty partner in the world to strengthen, to redefine, the relationship that we have and the roles that we play in the face of those rising tensions that we see now around the South China Sea and Asia Pacific," he said.

This was the first White House visit by a Philippines leader in 10 years.

Manila to give US four more military bases

The meeting saw the two countries reaffirm their decades-old security alliance under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty.

The US and the Philippines also recently completing their largest-ever war drills, and are holding their first joint fighter jet training in the Philippines since 1990.

Meanwhile, facilitating Washington's attempts to deter Beijing's increasingly aggressive actions toward Taiwan and in the disputed South China Sea, Manila agreed to give the US access to four more bases on its islands.

Following the Biden-Marcos meeting saw the announcement of the transfer of three C-130 aircraft and two coastal patrol vessels from the US to the Philippines, as well as the adoption of defense guidelines aimed at deepening cooperation and interoperability between the two nations' militaries across land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace.

China has angered the Philippines by repeatedly harassing its navy and coast guard patrols and chasing away fishermen in waters that are close to Philippine shores but that Beijing claims as its own.

Philippines: A crucial regional ally

The Philippines is crucial to any US effort to counter an invasion of Taiwan by China, which claims the island as its own territory.

Experts say that Washington considers the Philippines a potential location for rockets, missiles, and artillery systems to counter a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan.

Biden's administration contends with increased military and economic assertiveness by China and worries about North Korea's nuclear program, so the US has been investing in courting Marcos to strengthen the US-Philippine relationship.

A joint statement announced that Biden plans to dispatch a Presidential Trade and Investment Mission to the Philippines to promote investment in crucial mineral resources, support the transition towards clean energy, and improve food security.

The two countries will also co-host the 2024 Indo-Pacific Business Forum in Manila.

Spotlight on legacy of Ferdinand Marcos

Biden praised the progress in the U.S.-Philippine relationship, despite the ups and downs over the years.

During Marcos' predecessor Rodrigo Duterte's presidency Manila pursued closer ties with China.

Before Marcos took office last year, there were also concerns about the relationship between the US and the Philippines because of the long-standing litigation in the United States against the estate of his father, Ferdinand Marcos.

The elder Marcos was responsible for the torture and killings of thousands of Filipinos, and a US appeals court in 1996 upheld damages of about $2 billion (€1.82 billion) against his estate.

ss/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP)