Germany and Philippines sign defense agreement amid rising tensions in South China Sea

Philippines’ Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro and Germany’s Federal Defense Minister Boris Pistorius committed to a defense agreement aimed at enhancing cooperation between their respective defense forces, asserting that they oppose China’s expansionist claims in the South China Sea.

According to Arab News report, this important decision was taken when both of them were present in a meeting held in Manila.

Celebrating 70 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the representatives also expressed interest in establishing long-term ties between their armed forces, expanding defence training routines, bilateral exchanges and engaging in joint projects.

Tensions between Beijing and Manila have escalated recently following a number of clashes in disputed areas of the South China Sea.

In June this year, Manila claimed that China had attacked Manila’s naval ships during a resupply mission at Second Thomas Shoal.

The Filipino sailors were seriously injured in the incident at that time. Similarly, the defense forces of Taiwan, another country facing China’s expansionist claims, have also reported several interferences by Chinese aircraft in its airspace in July this year.

China currently claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, while a 2016 ruling by the Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration made clear that Beijing’s claims to the region have no legal basis.

This decision was based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). However, China rejected it.

During a press conference during the event, Teodoro said, “There is only one cause of the conflict in the South China Sea… it is China’s illegal and unilateral attempt to annex most of the South China Sea as its internal waters. The Philippines is not provoking China. We do not want war, yet we are bound not only by our Constitution but also as an obligation to our countrymen to defend all areas, whether jurisdiction or rights, that are for the exclusive benefit of Filipinos,” Arab News reported.

The move by Manila and Berlin comes just days after the US announced a US$500 million military fund to modernise the Philippine army. The Arab News report claimed that Pistorius’ visit to the Philippines was the first ever organised by a German defence minister.

Furthermore, Pistorius also mentioned that “This decision is lawful without exception. We have an obligation to strengthen maritime order, and we are fulfilling it. It is important that we support and protect the rules-based international order in everything we do here. Our commitments and engagements here are not against anyone, but instead, we are focused on maintaining the rules-based international order, securing freedom of navigation and protecting trade routes.”

he/she also said countries should contribute to efforts to reduce tensions by keeping “all channels of communication open,” including with China.

The same report also cited retired US Air Force Colonel Raymond Powell, director of Project Sealight, a project based at Stanford University that focuses on maritime transparency, who noted that “for Manila, strong defense ties with Germany are important as a symbol of the Philippines’ growing security network globally. It yields fewer material benefits than its ties with established Indo-Pacific powers such as the US, Japan and France, but it is important in showcasing the Philippines as an integral member of a strong global community with significant economic resources and military capabilities.”

Furthermore, Aaron Z. Rabena, a senior lecturer at the University of the Philippines’ Asian Center, highlighted that strengthening ties with Germany was a strategic move for Manila. “This is part of the Philippines’ strategy to widen its net of security partners and get as much defense and political support from them as possible. I would not be surprised if Germany soon participates in military exercises and also talks of a VFA (Visiting Forces Agreement) with the Philippines,” he/she said, Arab News reports.