Pompeo promises military intervention if Philippines attacked in South China Sea

The US has told the Philippines that it would come to its defense in the event of a confrontation with China which US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo singled out Friday as a threat to stability.

Pompeo made a stopover in Manila after a summit in Hanoi with North Korea, saying the US would adhere to a 1951 Philippine-US Mutual Defense Treaty in the event of a military showdown. 

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, however, is not a fan of the alliance and believes that it makes his country an unnecessary target of China, with which he wants stronger business ties.

The treaty was agreed five years after the Philippines gained independence from the US in 1946, under which they should come to each other's aid in case of an "armed attack in the Pacific area" on either party.

Duterte has repeatedly questioned the US commitment to the deal, noting Washington's inability to stop China from turning reefs into islands equipped with radar, missiles batteries and hangers for fighter jets.

Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has been seeking a review of the treaty, with the aim of clarifying the extent to which the US would defend the Philippines should it come under attack.

"Any armed attack on Philippine forces, aircraft or public vessels in the South China Sea will trigger mutual defense obligations," Pompeo said on Friday. 

"China's island-building and military activities in the South China Sea threaten your sovereignty, security and therefore economic livelihood as well as that of the United States," he said. 

China has warned that the US would have to pay a “price” if it continued to interfere in territorial disputes between Beijing and its neighbors over the South China Sea.

SS