HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.
![handle is hein.crs/goveofe0001 and id is 1 raw text is:
Con res ~on I Ftesear h Service
drib ml Ie~ I tivednae t1914
Updated February 1, 2024
The Philippines
Overview and Recent Developments
The United States and the Republic of the Philippines
maintain a deep relationship that includes a bilateral
security alliance, extensive military cooperation, close
people-to-people ties, and many shared strategic and
economic interests. U.S. administration of the Philippines
as a colonial territory (1898-1946), which followed 300
years of Spanish rule, shaped the relationship. Situated east
of the South China Sea and south of Taiwan, the
Philippines has long played an important role in U.S. Asia
policy as a close security and counterterrorism partner. The
1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) requires the two
countries to help defend each other against external armed
attack. The 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement governs the
legal status of U.S. military forces operating in the
Philippines. The Biden Administration has made
revitalizing U.S. alliances in Asia-including with the
Philippines-a key pillar of its Indo-Pacific Strategy. The
Philippines, the People's Republic of China (PRC or
China), and others have long-standing disputes over waters
and land features in the South China Sea. Rising tensions
between the Philippines and China over maritime claims are
a potential flashpoint in the region.
The United States is the Philippines' third-largest trading
partner, after the People's Republic of China (PRC or
China) and Japan, and its largest export market. The
Philippines is one of 14 members of the Indo-Pacific
Economic Framework Initiative, which the Administration
launched in May 2022.
Figure I.The Philippines at a Glance
Sources: Map, CRS; Other information, Central Intelligence Agency,
The World Factbook, 2023.
Ferdinand Bongbong Marcos Jr. was elected President of
the Philippines in 2022. Marcos's father, Ferdinand Marcos
Sr., ruled the country from 1965 to 1986, including through
martial law from 1972 until he was ousted by the 1986
People Power Revolution. Sara Duterte-Carpio, daughter of
former President Rodrigo Duterte (in office 2016-2022),
won the Vice Presidency. The Philippine constitution limits
both the President and Vice President, who are elected on
separate tickets, to one six-year term.
In May 2023, President Joe Biden met with President
Marcos in Washington, DC. The two countries issued a
joint statement that included mutual commitments to bolster
defense cooperation and to uphold freedom of navigation
and overflight in the South China Sea and respect for the
sovereign rights of states within their exclusive economic
zones [EEZs] consistent with international law. During
Marcos's visit, the two allies established new Bilateral
Defense Guidelines, which aim to modernize Philippine
defense capabilities, deepen interoperability, enhance
bilateral planning and information-sharing, and combat
transnational and non-conventional threats. They appear to
reinforce treaty obligations, stating that an armed attack
anywhere in the South China Sea, on either party's
armed forces-which includes both nations' Coast
Guards-aircraft, or public vessels, would invoke mutual
defense commitments under the MDT.
Foreign Relations
The Philippines has long sought to balance its relations with
the United States and China. Manila has relied on the U.S.
alliance and security presence in the region, while seeking
greater trade and investment from the PRC, despite
numerous tensions between the Philippines and China.
Unlike former President Duterte, who had expressed
distrust in the United States and sought early in his term to
strengthen ties with the PRC, Marcos has reaffirmed the
importance of the U.S.-Philippines alliance, while seeking
to maintain a stable relationship with China. The Marcos
administration and the Japanese government have discussed
strengthening security cooperation. The two countries
reportedly are negotiating a defense pact or reciprocal
access agreement that would allow their forces to enter each
other's territory for joint exercises. In January 2024, the
Philippines and Vietnam, which has competing claims in
the South China Sea with both the Philippines and the PRC,
signed agreements to prevent military incidents and to
expand coast guard cooperation.
The Philippines is the largest recipient of U.S. military
assistance in the East Asia-Pacific region, including Foreign
Military Financing and assistance under the Department of
Defense's (DOD's) Indo-Pacific Maritime Security
Initiative. U.S. military and Armed Forces of the
Philippines (AFP) personnel conduct regular military
exercises and maritime patrols, collaborate on
counterterrorism, and carry out joint humanitarian
activities. In April 2023, over 17,000 U.S. and AFP soldiers
plus 100 Australian troops participated in Balikatan
(Shoulder-to-Shoulder), the alliance's premier annual
bilateral exercise, in the Philippines. Balikatan 2023](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/goveofe0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)