The Philippines and the United States have signed a military intelligence-sharing agreement, which will allow the two allies to further deepen their security relations against a backdrop of growing Chinese power.
According to Reuters, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin yesterday signed the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) with his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro at Camp Aguinaldo, the headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in Manila.
The GSOMIA pact, which has been under negotiation for several years, will allow the two security allies to share classified military information through secure channels, and help “enhance information sharing and deepen interoperability,” the Department of National Defense said in a statement. It will also “allow the Philippines access to higher capabilities and big-ticket items from the United States,” it added.
While the two sides did not release the text of the agreement, the Associated Press quoted two Philippine officials as saying that it “would allow the U.S. to provide the Philippines with higher-level intelligence and more sophisticated weapons, including missile systems.”
In yesterday’s ceremony, Austin and Teodoro also broke ground on the Combined Coordination Center at Camp Aguinaldo that will facilitate collaboration between the U.S. and Philippine armed forces.
“This groundbreaking represents not only the construction of a facility, but the solidification of our commitment to one another, ensuring that our forces stand united in the face of challenges,” AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said during the ceremony. Austin described it as “a place where our forces can work side by side to respond to regional challenges.”
Security cooperation between the Philippines and the U.S. has deepened considerably since Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office in mid-2022. Last year, the Marcos administration expanded U.S. access to Philippine military facilities under the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement and the U.S. has taken part in joint maritime patrols of the South China Sea. In July, the U.S. announced $500 million in new military funding for the Philippines, aimed at boosting the country’s external defense capacity.
U.S. defense officials including Austin have also repeatedly assured Manila that an armed attack on any Philippines armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft in the South China Sea will oblige it to come to the Philippines’ aid under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, the bedrock of the U.S.-Philippine alliance. Today, Austin was scheduled to visit the AFP’s Western Command in Puerto Princesa, on Palawan island, which has jurisdiction over the scattering of Philippine possessions in the South China Sea.
This strategic convergence has been prompted by a shared concern about the implications of China’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea, particularly in areas of the waterway claimed by the Philippines. For the past two years, the China Coast Guard and maritime militias have increased their incursions into the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone in the Spratly Islands, which it claims under its expansive “nine-dash line” maritime claim. This has prompted tense stand-offs at Second Thomas Shoal and Sabina Shoal, some of which have resulted in collisions and clashes between Chinese and Philippine personnel. The two sides have also sparred at Scarborough Shoal, a standalone reef around 120 nautical miles (222 kilometers) west of Luzon island.
Unsurprisingly, Beijing responded to the signing of the GSOMIA with warnings. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said yesterday that any kind of military agreement or security cooperation “must not be directed against or harm the interests of a third party, and they must not undermine regional peace or exacerbate tensions in the region,” the Global Times tabloid reported, alongside a cartoon of an American octopus using a wooden stick (the Philippines) to “stir up trouble” in the South China Sea.
It quoted “experts” as saying that the intelligence sharing pact “may embolden Manila to be more provocative at sea.”