US backs Philippine efforts to strengthen WPS defense capability — Pentagon official

The United States is working closely with the Philippines to strengthen Manila’s military capabilities to protect its claims in the West Philippine Sea, a senior US defense official said on Monday.

During a fireside chat organized by Stratbase, US Undersecretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby said Washington was “working very, very closely with our Philippine government counterparts to ensure that they have the capacity and the backing” to defend its sovereign rights in the disputed area.

Beijing has continued to defy the 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated China’s sweeping claims over much of the South China Sea – including the West Philippine Sea that is part of the country’s exclusive economic zone – and which celebrated its 10^th anniversary last month.

Though he did not state specific operational plans, the Pentagon official pointed to the growing cooperation between the two allies, including bilateral military exercises like Balikatan, and that Washington and Manila were working to develop the capabilities and readiness needed to enable the United States to “rapidly come to the Philippines’ defense” if necessary.

But Colby also stressed that the goal was not for the Philippines to rely solely on the United States for its security: “We want you to be independent and autonomous, and we are going to help you be able to defend your own autonomy,” he stressed. “Obviously, our treaty alliance together is not directed at one country or another. It’s directed to aid the independence and security of the Philippines.”

Colby arrived in Manila as part of a four-nation Southeast Asian tour – including Thailand, Indonesia, and Cambodia – to reaffirm the US’ commitment to building durable peace in the Indo-Pacific region.

In his address, he touted the Philippines as a “model ally” actively leading its own defense modernization as he emphasized the United States’ foreign policy pivot toward “partnerships, not dependencies…When we ask our allies and partners to step up, to invest more in their own defense, and to take responsibility for their own sovereign security, we are not signaling abandonment.”

At the same time, Colby signaled that Washington wants to see a shift toward building “combat-credible capability” rather than focusing primarily on the optics of military cooperation.

“It’s good to have countries involved, but really what we need is to see a real development in combat credible capability,” he said.

He noted that political capital should be directed toward building military capacity and resilience, as well as conducting more exercises with capable allies and partners.