US cites China ‘aggression,’ vows deeper PH-Japan deterrence

The United States has reaffirmed its commitment to defend the Philippines under its 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, linking Manila’s security concerns to Washington’s in the wake of what it described as China’s “increased aggression” in the West Philippine Sea. Speaking at a US-Philippines Society trilateral panel in Makati City on Tuesday, US Chargé d’Affaires ad