Philippines: A. Blinken assures Ferdinand Marcos jr of the “unshakable alliance” between Washington and Manila

Philippines, Manila, August 6, 2022: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (L) is received by the new Philippine President, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (C).

AP - Andrew Harnik

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

He is the highest American official to visit the Philippines since Ferdinand Marcos junior came to power.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met the new president in Manila on Saturday.

At a time when China is carrying out the most important military maneuvers near the Taiwanese coast, just 400 km from the Philippines, the archipelago is once again becoming a cornerstone in the Asian strategy of the United States.

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At a time when

and claiming sovereignty over almost all of the South China Sea, Washington needs to cajole its Asian allies.

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With son Marcos, what posture for the Philippines in the "China Sea"?

Alongside the new President

the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, therefore praised the “unshakable alliance” between Washington and Manila.

"Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is vital not only for Taiwan, but also for the Philippines and many other countries," Blinken said.

A pleasure to meet Philippine President @bongbongmarcos to discuss ways to strengthen our longstanding alliance with the Philippines.

I look forward to deepening our collaboration to advance freedom, prosperity, and security across the Indo-Pacific.

#USPHThrivingAt75 pic.twitter.com/rSjxD6mxJC

— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) August 6, 2022

Under a security pact signed in 1951, the US military has access to certain military bases on the island and can store military equipment there.

The former American colony is therefore more than ever a centerpiece for Washington, which seeks to counter Chinese influence in the region.

In this pact, the two countries assure of their "joint determination to defend themselves against armed attack, and...that they both recognize that an armed attack in the Pacific region against one of them would be dangerous to the peace and security of the other".

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: Blinken expected in the Philippines to discuss cooperation between Manila and Washington

After a tumultuous period under populist President

, who had moved closer to Beijing, the United States is now betting on Ferdinand Marcos, the son of the former dictator who had also already been able to count on the support of the States. -United.

Diplomatic Offensive in the Pacific

US President Joe Biden will welcome Pacific Island leaders to the White House in September, a US official announced on Saturday.

Visiting Tonga, a Polynesian state, Assistant Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said Pacific island leaders would be invited to Washington for a meeting and dinner late next month. 

An initiative which is part of a wave of American shuttle diplomacy aimed at strengthening ties in the Pacific in the face of a China clearly asserting its presence in the region, specifies AFP.

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: Kick-off of the Rimpac, bringing together the United States and 26 allied countries

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• Philippines

• United States

• Ferdinand Marcos Jr.