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Supporting Typhoon Recovery and Defense in the Philippines
In mid-November, the Republic of the Philippines was struck by Super Typhoon Man-yi. The natural disaster, known locally as Super Typhoon Pepito, was the seventh tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines since September. The storm affected more than 850,000 people and damaged critical infrastructure in the country.
The United States is committed to helping the Philippines recover from the typhoon, said U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in a recent trip to the Philippines. Assistance will include $1 million through the U.S. Agency for International Development to support humanitarian partner organizations providing emergency shelter, water, sanitation, hygiene assistance, and other essential relief supplies.
During his visit, Secretary Austin met with Philippines Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro and signed a General Security of Military Information Agreement as well as broke ground on a new bilateral Combined Coordination Center. These actions will improve joint bilateral exercises, operations, and humanitarian response efforts to address common challenges in the Indo-Pacific region.
These challenges include the People’s Republic of China’s dangerous actions in the South China Sea. Several lawful operations by the Philippines have encountered repeated harassment by the PRC. These actions are “dangerous and escalatory measures to enforce their expansive South China Sea maritime claims,” said Secretary Austin. “We stand with the Philippines, and we condemn dangerous actions by the PRC against the lawful Philippine operations in the South China Sea.”
“America is profoundly committed to the defense of the Philippines. Our commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty is ironclad. And let me say again that the Mutual Defense Treaty applies to armed attacks on either of our armed forces, aircraft, or public vessels, including our coast guards anywhere in the South China Sea,” he said.
According to the United States, the meetings between the U.S. and Philippine defense officials “reaffirms the strength of the alliance and underscore both nations’ commitment to peace, security, and shared values in the Indo-Pacific region.”