Philippines roping in more allies in South China Sea fight

MANILA – August is shaping up as a busy month for defense diplomacy in the Philippines.

In a historic first, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius dropped by Manila over the weekend to explore closer military cooperation and underscore shared concerns over maritime stability in the region.

In a meeting with Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr, the two emerging allies celebrated 70 years of diplomatic relations and, crucially, emphasized their growing convergence in strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific.

In a joint statement, the two defense chiefs “strongly opposed any unilateral attempt to advance expansive claims, especially through force or coercion,” referring to the latest incidents in the South China Sea.

Over the past year, Chinese and Philippine maritime forces have clashed on more than half a dozen occasions, culminating in the injury of several Philippine servicemen and damage to numerous Philippine vessels.

Pistorious’ visit came barely a week after a historic two-plus-two meeting between Philippine and American diplomatic and defense chiefs in Manila, with the US announcing a new US$500 million military aid package to modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Flush with cash and growing support from both the Philippine government and key allies, Teodoro told his latest high-profile guest that the AFP was “looking to engage Germany as a possible supplier” of advanced weapons systems, especially in the area of “command and control, anti-access aerial denial, maritime domain, [and] aerial domain and in higher technologically capable equipment.”

The Philippines aims to spend up to $35 billion to modernize its naval, air force and cyber capacity over the next decade. The US aid package