By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Following the December 10 incident when a Chinese Coast Guard ship used water cannons on a Philippine navy-operated supply boat, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III on Wednesday (December 13), discussed China’s alleged latest aggression in the West Philippine Sea (WPS).
According to a readout provided by the Pentagon, Austin III has reaffirmed that the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) extends to both nations’ coast guards “and anywhere in the Pacific,” including the South China Sea, where the smaller WPS is located.
The MDT is an agreement between the US and the Philippines to support each other in case of an armed attack.
Earlier, Commodore Jay Tarriela, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the Chinese Coast Guard “water cannoned” two of its resupply vessels – Unaizah Mae 1 and M/L Kalayaan – in the South China Sea on Sunday morning, December 10.
Teodoro and Austin III also “discussed the coercive and unlawful actions” by China, including the “unprovoked use of acoustic devices, water cannons, and reckless maneuvers at Scarborough Shoal and Second Thomas Shoal,” the Pentagon said.
Austin assured that the US’s commitment to the Philippines “remains ironclad.” He reiterated Washington’s support for Manila “in defending its sovereign rights” under international law.
At the same time, the defense secretaries of the Philippines and the US agreed to boost bilateral and multilateral coordination with other like-minded partners to enhance interoperability as well as to fast-track the modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
(ai/mnm)