A bipartisan resolution just introduced by US Democratic Senator Chris Coons and Republican Senator Pete Ricketts marks the 73rd anniversary of the signing of the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the Philippines and the United States, reaffirming the latter’s commitment to the defense of the former, and blasting the “persistent and escalating” aggression by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in the West Philippine Sea.
“Chinese harassment against Filipinos simply trying to uphold their territorial sovereignty threatens global trade and security and could result in wider conflict,” warned Coons in a statement.
“As we celebrate the 73rd anniversary of the US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty, we reaffirm our commitment to strengthening the US-Philippines alliance and pledge to stand with our Filipino partners in their efforts to defend their territorial sovereignty and maintain a free and open Indo Pacific.”
For his part, Ricketts pointed out that for over seven decades, the MDT “has served as the foundation of our alliance and steadfast commitment to each other’s security.”
More than ever today, Ricketts said, “that commitment is important given the PRC’s increased harassment and intimidation of our allies and partners in the South China Sea.”
Stressed the Republican senator, “We must continue to send a clear message to Beijing that the US stands with the Philippines and will act to restore deterrence and ensure that our ally can defend itself.”
The two senators, in their joint resolution, took cognizance of the fact that the two countries’ partnership was “forged in blood” with the death of over 20,000 American and hundreds of thousands of Filipinos during World War 2.
Philippine independence was officially secured by the Americans on 4 July 1946 after the four-year Japanese invasion and occupation in 1941-1945. A year later, the US and the Philippines entered into a Military Bases Agreement in 1947 and after four years, on 30 August 1951, both countries signed the MDT.
That MDT is the basis for the US-Philippine security alliance and all other enabling defense agreements between the two countries, including the Enhanced defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) which allows the US military to have a presence in the Philippines long after anti-US sentiment saw the rejection by the Senate in 1991 of a new bases agreement that removed US forces from the country, including from Clark Air Base in Pampanga and the US Naval Base Subic Bay in Olongapo, in 1992.
Aside from trying impeachment cases and having concurrence on every bill in order for it to be passed and submitted for presidential signature to become law, the Senate is the sole body empowered by the Constitution to concur in and ratify treaties in the Philippines.
Six years after US forces left the country, both governments in 1998 inked the Philippine-US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) which led to the holding of annual bilateral military exercises (Balikatan) between the two countries.
Sixteen years later, on 28 April 2014, EDCA was operationalized. With an initial 10-year effectivity period, EDCA was designed to supplement both the MDT and the VFA.
It allows the US to rotate troops into the Philippines, allowing the former to build and operate facilities in Philippine bases for both American and Philippine forces to use. It, however, prohibits the US from establishing permanent military bases in the country and bringing in nuclear weapons.
The US may no longer have their bases in Clark and Subic but EDCA has allowed it to have a military presence here, specifically at nine sites — the Antonio Bautista Air Base and Balabac Island in Palawan, Basa Air Base in Pampanga, Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu, Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro, Camp Melchor de la Cruz in Isabela and Lal-lo Airport and Camilo Osias Naval Base both in Cagayan.
These sites have strategic value for both America and the Philippines, bolstering confidence in the alliance and providing opportunities for operational cooperation in securing the country and, need we say, US interests in this part of the region.
This, as the PRC substantially expands its ability to project power throughout the South China Sea with its construction of militarized artificial islands and continuing to use assertive and aggressive tactics against the Philippines to enforce its arbitrary and unlawful territorial claims in the SCS.
In their resolution, both US senators acknowledged the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ determination to resist the “coercion” by the PRC and “condemns” China’s persistent and unprovoked aggression in the SCS to enforce its territorial and sovereignty claims which had been deemed unlawful under international law.
They also urged President Joe Biden to take appropriate and necessary actions in response to the PRC’s “escalatory behavior” in order to restore deterrence and help the Philippines defend itself.
Such a touching gesture, this bilateral resolution of the US senators, but would this move the US government to effect concrete action against the continued belligerent behavior of China in the WPS?
And if it does, to what lengths would it actually go to secure its MDT ally from any more assaults by the Chinese?