US ready to go to war for Philippines if China attacks
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is calling on Beijing to comply with the arbitration ruling, and that the US is obligated to defend its treaty ally, the Philippines, if its forces, vessels or aircraft come under attack in the disputed territory.
The statement was released on the sixth anniversary of the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s (PCA) 2016 decision in The Hague under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) declaring that the Philippines has exclusive sovereign rights over the disputed islands in the South China Sea.
China did not participate in the arbitration proceedings calling it illegal and invalid, and continues with its expansive claims over the disputed territories with other countries with sovereign claims in the area.
Arbitration ruling ‘final’
“The United States reaffirms its July 13, 2020 policy regarding maritime claims in the South China Sea,” Blinken said in a statement published by the US Embassy in Manila.
“We also reaffirm that an attack on the Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft in the South China Sea would invoke US mutual defense commitments under Article IV if the 1951 US-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty,” Blinken added.
US ready to go to war for Philippines if China attacks (msn.com)
