Gibo Teodoro calls for enhanced cross-regional security cooperation

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro on Sunday called for the enhancement of cross-regional security cooperation among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other countries, amid the ongoing rift between China and the United States and vulnerabilities of the global infrastructure.

Speaking before defense and security leaders at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Teodoro said countries should improve cross-regional security cooperation through joint strategic dialogues such as trilateral or quadrilateral summits of regional blocs on shared security concerns.

“To this end, we must strengthen ASEAN and leverage its dialogue partnerships, including those with the European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council,” he said.

“Another potential area of convergence is the development of shared legal frameworks and cooperative enforcement,” the defense official added.

Teodoro also called for the broader participation of member states of the United Nations in the Security Council, citing the need to curtail the use of the veto as this “may serve as a hindrance” to the interests of smaller states.

“For all its shortcomings, there is no preferable alternative to the rules-based order, especially for the security, prosperity, and survival of smaller states like the Philippines,” he added.

Teodoro’s remarks come amid the competition between the United States and China that has increasingly defined the regional security environment, and what the Department of Defense said endangers the portrayal of legitimate actions taken by smaller states as being made at the behest of major powers.

“As if we are mere pawns with no strategic agency of our,” he said, “In that spirit, I would like to reiterate that our position on the West Philippine Sea is not a function of Sino-American strategic rivalry. Instead, it is caused by the overreach of the Chinese Communist Party.”

To recall, the Philippines in 2013 challenged China over its claims on the West Philippine Sea, where Manila scored a victory and a landmark ruling by an international tribunal which invalidated Beijing’s claims.

Beijing has refused to acknowledge the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s 2016  ruling that invalidated its nine-dash line. Its government in 2022 claimed that it will continue to adhere to what it described as a  “friendly consultation” with the Philippines after several Chinese  vessels have been found “swarming” areas in the West Philippine Sea.

The Philippines has already filed over 150 diplomatic protests  against China regarding the territorial dispute under the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. —Jon Viktor Cabuenas/RF, GMA Integrated News