US missile deployments in Philippines signal deeper strategic shift in region
Analysts said the move bolsters the First Island Chain strategy and deepens Manila’s role in regional defence planning
Announced after the 12th Philippines–US Bilateral Strategic Dialogue this week, the move reflects a steady effort to reinforce the so-called First Island Chain and bolster the US–Philippines alliance’s defensive posture in both the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait.
In a statement released after Tuesday’s meeting, the US Embassy in Manila said both countries would “continue and work to increase deployments of US cutting-edge missile and unmanned systems to the Philippines, expand and modernise the Philippines’ civilian and military cyber defence capabilities and ability to detect and disrupt cyber threats”.
Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose Manuel Romualdez, who attended the dialogue, said US and Filipino defence officials had discussed the possible deployment this year of upgraded US missile launchers that Manila might later decide to purchase.
“It’s a kind of system that’s really very sophisticated and will be deployed here in the hope that, down the road, we will be able to get our own,” Romualdez said, as quoted by Associated Press.
The announcement builds on earlier deployments that have already drawn sharp protests from Beijing.