Last Friday, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. stated that if tensions over Taiwan escalate, the Philippines will not allow the United States to launch attacks from Philippine territory.
At a forum hosted by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines, Marcos said: "Our only concern is to defend our territory and maintain peace and stability... Allowing attacks to be launched from the Philippines against any party is contrary to this policy."
He added that the Philippines "has no intention of becoming a belligerent country in the region."
During Marcos's term, he has strengthened defense relations with the United States, expanded US access to Philippine military bases, and held large-scale military exercises. As relations between the Philippines and China have deteriorated due to overlapping sovereignty claims in the South China Sea, ties between the Philippines and the United States have further improved.
However, Marcos is attempting to ease tensions with Beijing and said that the Philippines is still open to carrying out energy exploration in the disputed South China Sea with China.
He said that due to recent energy supply disruptions and soaring prices, developing potential offshore resources has become more urgent. There are exploitable natural gas resources off the coast of the Philippines, some of which are located in Reed Bank within its exclusive economic zone (China calls it Liyue Tan).
For many years, China and the Philippines have been exploring joint natural gas exploration at Reed Bank, but negotiations have repeatedly broken down due to disputes over sovereignty.
Marcos said: "We must find new ways... This discussion has attracted widespread attention. For now, I think we've made progress."
"My sense is that all relevant parties hope this cooperation succeeds. That's a very good sign... I think there's a high possibility of carrying out such joint exploration."
He added that the Philippines is consulting with China on outstanding issues, including the framework terms for any final arrangement.
Marcos also defended the temporary agreement between the Philippines and China on resupplying outposts in the South China Sea, saying the deal helps avoid misjudgments in disputed waters while upholding the Philippines' sovereignty claims.
He said: "If we begin to detect or sense the escalation of tensions, then we must consider re-engaging with our Chinese friends, telling them: 'You see, things are going in the wrong direction.'"
However, Marcos said the Philippines will push ahead with maritime boundary negotiations with Japan, a plan that has sparked discontent in China. He hopes the negotiations can be completed this year.
After Japan and the Philippines opened negotiations in June this year on the delimitation of their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves east of Taiwan, Chinese coast guard vessels immediately began patrols in the waters east of Taiwan, stating that the relevant operations were an "exercise of jurisdiction according to the law."