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MANILA — The volatile geopolitical situation and the fallout from the visit to Taiwan by Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi underscore the importance of U.S.-Philippine relations, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said Saturday.
Marcos, meeting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the presidential palace in Manila, said his visit was timely, but he felt Pelosi’s trip ‘did not increase the intensity’ of an already volatile situation. .
Blinken is the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit the Philippines since the inauguration of Marcos, the son of the late strongman whom Washington helped flee into exile in Hawaii after a “people power” uprising in 1986.
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He assured Marcos that the United States would honor its commitments to its decades-old Common Defense Pact.
“The alliance is strong and I believe it can get even stronger,” Blinken told Marcos.
“We are committed to the mutual defense treaty that we pledge to work with the Philippines on common challenges.”
The Philippines is at the heart of the geopolitical rivalry between the United States and China, and Marcos faces a delicate challenge to balance his country’s ties between the two major economic powers.
US-Philippine relations have been rocked by Marcos’ predecessor Rodrigo Duterte’s overtures to China, his frequent outbursts about his contempt for the United States and his threats to downgrade their defense ties.
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Blinken’s visit to the Philippines came amid rising tensions, fierce rhetoric and a display of Chinese military might around Taiwan stemming from Pelosi’s visit to the self-governing island, which China considers as its sovereign territory.
Marcos said Pelosi’s trip “just demonstrated…the intensity of this conflict.”
“We’ve been at this level for quite a while, but we kind of got used to the idea,” he told Blinken ahead of a closed-door meeting.
Blinken then held a virtual meeting with Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo, who is recovering from COVID-19.
Manalo said Washington was “an important ally, partner and friend”, but also stressed to Blinken the need for calm to prevail as tensions rise in Taiwan, an island just 260 km (161 miles) from the mainland. Filipino.
“The Philippines of course continues to look to the major powers to help calm the waters and keep the peace,” Manalo said.
“We cannot afford a further escalation of tensions in the region.”
Blinken said peace and security was a challenge the United States had to face everywhere, but that it was “determined to act responsibly, in order to avoid crises, we avoid conflicts.” (Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Writing by Karen Lema; Editing by Martin Petty)
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