May 8, 2025
SINGAPORE – A top US general has assured Indo-Pacific nations that Washington will keep to its promise to ensure its allies’ security, weeks after China’s coast guard unfurled the nation’s flag atop a sandbank also claimed by the Philippines in the South China Sea.
Responding to a question from The Straits Times during a virtual press briefing on May 7, the US Army’s Pacific commander, General Ronald Clark, said the US stood “shoulder to shoulder” with the Philippines in its territorial dispute with Beijing.
However, he stressed that he could not speak for the government in Manila, nor dictate what actions it might take.
“We have worked very closely with them – really day-to-day work – allowing for the dialogue necessary and the coordination necessary and interoperability between the Philippine armed forces and our own, to work through some of the challenges associated with some of the claims being made on their sovereign territory,” said Gen Clark.
“As a treaty ally, we stand shoulder to shoulder with them as they work through challenges (relating) not just to features in the South China Sea, but also their sovereign territory at large,” he added.
Gen Clark’s comments come after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth pledged to strengthen ties with the Philippines and “restore deterrence” during a March trip to Asia.
The flag unfurling in mid-April at Sandy Cay – part of the disputed Spratly Islands – came to light shortly after the US and Philippines launched their annual Balikatan (“shoulder to shoulder”) military drills involving more than 17,000 personnel on April 21, with the timing seen as a direct challenge to both Washington and Manila.
Beijing’s actions at what it calls Tiexian Reef were reported in the Chinese media only on April 25, though the incident was believed to have been staged two weeks before. This prompted Manila to send military personnel to stage a flag-raising ceremony of its own at the maritime feature just days later on April 28.
Manila’s response sparked warnings from Beijing against actions that “violated China’s territorial sovereignty”.
Sandy Cay is situated just kilometres from Thitu Island, the second-largest of the natural islands that make up the Spratlys. Known as Pag-asa in the Philippines, Thitu is home to a few hundred civilians and a military outpost.
The tensions over the South China Sea take place amid growing animosity between the US and China, with the two superpowers engaged in a brutal trade war that is likely to hurt global growth and prosperity.
The deteriorating situation has raised fears among smaller nations that they will be arm-twisted into picking a side against their own self-interest.
- Arvind Jayaram is an assistant foreign editor at The Straits Times.