Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said ahead of a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday he will not allow his country to be used as a "staging post for any kind of military action" as tensions between Washington and Beijing increase over the Taiwan Strait.
The Southeast Asian country leader is expected to discuss with Biden the "evolving conditions" of his country's decades-old defense treaty with the United States.
Aboard an aircraft en route to Washington, Marcos also told reporters on Sunday that he will not encourage any "provocative action" by any country that will put at risk the peace and security of the Philippines.
Marcos has recently allowed the United States to use additional Philippine military bases, a move that China took as Manila interfering in Taiwan's affairs.
"I think the best move for us is to stay within ASEAN, keep ASEAN solid, strong and united... That ASEAN will still be the one to conduct and to lead the political fortunes of all the other countries around Asia," Marcos said, upholding the centrality of the Southeast Asian bloc in dealing with regional issues.
The Philippines and China have overlapping claims in the South China Sea, an area rich in minerals and a critical trade route that is also being claimed in whole or in part by Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, and Taiwan.
The Philippines is one of the United States' oldest allies in Asia and the largest recipient of U.S. military assistance in the region.
Marcos said he intends to discuss with Biden the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States as it has to be "responsive" to the present geopolitical situation.
He said the conditions under which the treaty was written are "completely different" from the current conditions, noting China has become very dominant in the region while the United States has become less so.
On April 23, a Chinese coast guard ship blocked and nearly collided with a Philippine coast guard vessel that was patrolling near the Manila-held Second Thomas Shoal in the contested waterway. Manila said similar dangerous maneuvers also took place in the vicinity on April 19.
The United States said it stands with the Philippines against China's "continued infringement" of freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and reiterated that an armed attack on Philippine armed forces and vessels in the Pacific would invoke its mutual defense commitments to Manila.
