By Corey Bennett
Recently, Joe Biden has warned China, days after two collisions between Filipino and Chinese vessels. Stating that the US will defend the Philippines in case of any attack in the South China Sea
This speech by Biden was one of his strongest since tensions between Beijing and Manila became worse in recent months. Biden reiterated his “ironclad” defense commitment. “Any attack on the Filipino aircraft, vessels, or armed forces will invoke our Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines,” states Biden in his speech.
This “ironclad” is a Mutual Defense Treaty, signed in 1951, that binds the US and the Philippines, a former colony, promising to defend each other in the event of an attack.
“I want to be clear—I want to be very clear: The United States’ defense commitment to the Philippines is ironclad. The United States defense agreement with the Philippines is ironclad,” he said.
After this speech made by Biden, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, stated that the US has “no right to get involved in a problem between China and the Philippines.” Bringing up the question: Should the US defend the Philippines?
Last Sunday, the Philippines made a statement saying that China’s “dangerous maneuvers” led to a collision between a Chinese coast guard ship and a Filipino supply boat. In a separate situation, Manila says that a Chinese militia boat “bumped” into a Philippine coast guard vessel.
However, the defense minister of the Philippines, Gilberto Teodoro Jr., says that the Chinese boats had “intentionally hit” the vessels and even accused China of “distorting the story to fit its own ends.”
Biden has since echoed these claims, saying that the Chinese “acted dangerously and unlawfully” when the collisions happened.
Since the speech, the US has challenged China’s territorial claims by stepping up their military activity and naval presence in the region.
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