Washington showed the yellow card against Beijing on Thursday. Joe Biden pledged to defend the Philippines in the event of an “attack” in the South China Sea, during an unprecedented summit with Japanese and Philippine leaders.
The American president declared that “any attack on an aircraft, a ship or the Philippine armed forces in the South China Sea would trigger the implementation of the mutual defense treaty” which binds Washington and Manila.
A maritime area under tension
A few hours later, the three leaders expressed in a joint statement their “deep concern about the dangerous and aggressive behavior of the People’s Republic of China in the South China Sea”, saying in particular “concerned by the militarization of the territories gained and by illegal maritime claims” in this strategic region.
Joe Biden received Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House, against the backdrop of serial incidents involving China in this tense maritime area.
“The United States’ commitment to the security of Japan and the Philippines is unwavering,” the Democratic president said. He also mentioned the shared objective of a “free, open, prosperous and secure” Asia-Pacific region, the now usual expression used by Americans to refer to projects deemed dangerous and aggressive by China.
Anger of Beijing
Beijing should hardly appreciate these comments. The Chinese authorities had already reacted virulently to the announcement, made on Wednesday, of increased military cooperation between the United States and Japan. “The United States and Japan, in disregard of China’s serious concerns, have defamed and attacked China on Taiwan and maritime issues,” declared Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In recent months, tensions between China and the Philippines – which are increasingly asserting their territorial claims – have reached levels not seen in years. The cause: a series of incidents since the end of 2023 near disputed reefs in the South China Sea. Last month, two collisions between Chinese and Philippine ships took place near the Second Thomas Atoll, named Ren’ai by China.
In this context, Joe Biden announced that the United States, the Philippines and Japan would “deepen their ties in terms of maritime security”. He also promised closer economic and technological cooperation, particularly to develop major infrastructure projects in the Philippines.