Philippines-US defence arrangements to stay intact, ambassador to Washington says

Existing defence agreements between security allies the Philippines and the US will remain intact under US President Donald Trump, Manila's ambassador to the US said on Monday.

For his part, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr is ready to travel when Trump has time for a meeting and that could be in the northern spring, Jose Manuel Romualdez told reporters on the sidelines of a forum with foreign media in Manila.

Asked about US security support for the Philippines, including military financing, patrols in the South China Sea and Philippine defence facilities used by US forces under their alliance, Romualdez said: “All of that will remain.”

The US and former colony the Philippines are staunch defence allies, with US troops rotating in and out of the Southeast Asian country regularly and dozens of joint exercises held each year. The US has also deployed to the Philippines a Typhon multipurpose missile system for training purposes, angering China, which has repeatedly said the move poses a threat to regional stability.

The Philippines was seeking to import liquefied natural gas from the US as part of a “give and take” on trade, Romualdez said.

His remarks come as some countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Thailand, scramble to reduce trade surpluses with the US after Trump's order to his government to complete a review of all his country's trade relationships by April 1.

“Trump's idea of what the US wants to do is helping other countries become a real partner,” said Romualdez, who is a cousin of the Philippine president and was posted in Washington under the previous Manila administration.

Reuters