Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. Eric Smith receives a briefing aboard the amphibious assault ship USS America in the Korea Strait on Sept. 7, 2024. (Juan Maldonado/U.S. Marine Corps)
America’s top Marine pledged this week to help the Philippine military develop capabilities to monitor its sea territory amid ongoing coast guard clashes with China, according to a state-run media report.
Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith, during a trip to the island nation, promised the Philippines’ vice chief of staff, air force Lt. Gen. Arthur Cordura, that the Marines will help Manila boost its maritime surveillance capabilities, the state-run Philippine News Agency reported Tuesday.
The Philippines has limited resources, and the Marines are the lightest U.S. service branch, so the commandant is likely talking about drones and electronic warfare, Paul Buchanan, a U.S. security expert based in New Zealand, said by email Tuesday.
Real-time intelligence, analysis, target designation and communication will be a priority, so any assistance would likely involve electronic warfare specialists, intelligence Marines and drone operators, he said.
Smith made the pledge during a visit to Camp Aguinaldo, the Philippine military’s headquarters in Quezon City, according to the news agency report.
During the meeting, Smith committed to helping the Philippine military develop its ability to detect intrusions within its territorial waters so it can work more closely with U.S. counterparts, according to the report.
The generals also discussed an upcoming naval drill involving forces from both countries in the islands — Samasama, Tagalog for “together.”
Marine Rotational Force — Southeast Asia, formed in 2022, participated in Samasama in the Philippines last year.
Smith’s remarks are the latest by U.S. military officers pledging support on behalf of the Philippines, which the United States is bound by treaty to defend in the event of an attack.
The head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Adm. Samuel Paparo, told reporters in Manila on Aug. 27 that the U.S. military is open to consultations about escorting Philippine ships in disputed waters of the South China Sea, where Philippine and Chinese coast guards clash routinely.
Most recently, the two sides collided Aug. 31 at Sabina Shoal, where Philippine authorities allege a Chinese vessel rammed a Philippine vessel three times. China lays claim to nearly the entire sea, including features inside the Philippine exclusive economic zone.
The two countries had agreed to ease mounting tensions at another flashpoint, Second Thomas Shoal, where Filipino marines man an outpost on a grounded, rusting warship.
Beijing has reclaimed land and built military facilities in disputed territory. Its claims are challenged by neighboring countries, including Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam.
A combined U.S. Navy and Marine Corps amphibious ready group and Marine expeditionary unit can surveil a large portion of Philippine maritime territory and extend into the South China Sea, said retired Marine Col. Grant Newsham, a senior researcher with the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies in Tokyo.
“If it’s just Marines, they have the capability to ‘cover’ from land a stretch of ocean extending out into the Philippines EEZ for some distance,” he told Stars and Stripes by email Tuesday.
New Marine surveillance and missile detachments use radars, drones and even piloted aircraft to surveil sea territory, he wrote.
“Anything the Philippines can do to defend itself is something the Americans don’t have to do,” Newsham said. “But even better, the more capable the Philippine military, the more effective a combined US-Philippine defense is.”
