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US President Joe Biden speaks to the press with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (R) and Filipino President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. (L) at the White House in Washington, DC, April 11, 2024. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds, AFP

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Katrina Domingo

ABS-CBN News

<p>WASHINGTON — The Philippines, Japan, and the United States are committed to “build an Indo-Pacific that is free, open, prosperous and secure for all,” US President Joe Biden said on Thursday, weeks after China’s latest aggression in the South China Sea.</p><p>Manila, Tokyo and Washington will be “deepening our maritime and security ties,” Biden said during the first-ever trilateral summit, which guaranteed programs and investments to make the 3 countries become more resilient amid regional tensions. </p><p>“A great deal of history in our world would be written in the Indo-Pacific over the coming years as the three allies, three steadfast partners and three proud democracies represented half a billion people,” Biden said during the trilateral summit.</p><p>“Today, we commit to writing that story in the future together to build an Indo-Pacific that is free, open, prosperous and secure for all,” he said.</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/2024/4/11/ph-alliance-with-us-japan-to-bring-more-jobs-more-investments-for-filipinos-biden-635" id="isPasted">READ: PH alliance with US, Japan to bring ‘more jobs, more investments’ for Filipinos: Biden</a></div><p>The trilateral summit comes weeks after 3 Filipinos were injured after China fired water cannons at the resupply vessel sailing within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.</p><p>President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had rallied Manila’s allies to come to its aid to curb China’s growing belligerence in the West Philippine Sea.</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/4/8/ph-doing-everything-possible-to-ease-tension-with-china-marcos-1324">READ: Philippines &#x27;doing everything possible&#x27; to ease tension with China: Marcos</a></div><p>After speaking to Chinese President Xi Jinping last week, Biden reiterated at the trilateral summit <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/2024/4/11/biden-vows-ironclad-defense-of-philippines-japan-545">Washington’s “iron-clad” commitment</a> to its treaty allies, Japan and the Philippines. </p><p>“The United States’ defense commitments to Japan and to the Philippines are iron-clad,” Biden said, echoing a similar statement he made during Marcos Jr.’s visit to Washington last year. </p><p>“Any attack on Philippine aircraft, vessels or Armed Forces in the South China Sea would invoke our Mutual Defense Treaty,” he said, referring to the 1951 document that guarantees that Manila and Washington will come to the aid of the other in the event of an armed attack.</p><p>Marcos noted that the new trilateral cooperation between the Philippines, Japan and the United States “can be just the beginning.” </p><p>“Today’s summit is an opportunity to define the future that we want and how we intend to achieve it together,” the Filipino leader said. </p><p>“This is a meeting that looks ahead as we deepen our ties and enhance our coordination, we seek to identify ways of growing our economies and making them more resilient, climate-proofing our cities and our societies, sustain our development progress and forging a peaceful world for the next generation,” he said.</p><p>Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said that the three nations &quot;are natural partners.”</p><p>“As the world faces complex crises, multi-layered cooperation with allies and like-minded countries is important in order to maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law,” he said.</p><p>“I believe that today&#x27;s meeting will be a historic meeting that will significantly advance these efforts,” he said.</p><p>The three leaders have agreed to mount “combined naval training,” including an exercise aboard a US coast guard vessel this year, and another set of drills “around Japan in 2025.” </p><p>Tokyo and Washington have also agreed to pour billions-worth of investments in the Philippines to help the southeast Asian country become more economically resilient.</p><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/OaMBCdZqneA?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div>

<p>Manila, Tokyo and Washington will be “deepening our maritime and security ties,” Biden said.</p>

Manila, Tokyo and Washington will be “deepening our maritime and security ties,” Biden said.

Biden says PH, Japan, US 'to build free, open' Indo-Pacific amid China’s aggression

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Biden says PH, Japan, US 'to build free, open' Indo-Pacific amid China’s aggression

Katrina Domingo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Apr 12, 2024 01:52 PM PHT

Read More:

JAPHUS trilateral summit

Bongbong Marcos

Joe Biden

South China Sea

China

Beijing

West Philippine Sea

politics

diplomacy

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