Philippines to remove US missile system if China ends 'coercive behaviour'

Philippines to remove US missile system if China ends 'coercive behaviour'
by AFP Staff Writers
Manila (AFP) Jan 30, 2025

President Ferdinand Marcos said Thursday his government will remove a US missile system from the Philippines if Beijing ends its "aggressive and coercive behaviour" in the contested South China Sea and ceases claiming Filipino territory.

The US military deployed the Typhon missile system in the northern Philippines last year as part of an annual joint exercise, and Filipino troops have been training with it, with plans to acquire the system as a means to protect Manila's maritime interests.

Beijing's forces have engaged in several confrontations with Philippine vessels in recent months over disputed reefs and waters in the strategically located South China Sea.

The US mid-range weapon system's presence on Philippine soil has angered China, which has warned Manila was "inciting geopolitical confrontation and an arms race" in the region.

"I don't understand the comments on the Typhon missiles. We don't make any comments on their missile systems, and their missile systems are a thousand times more powerful than what we have," Marcos told reporters Thursday during a visit to the central city of Cebu.

"Let's make a deal with China: Stop claiming our territory, stop harassing our fishermen and let them have a living, stop ramming our boats, stop water-cannoning our people, stop firing lasers at us, and stop your aggressive and coercive behaviour," Marcos said.

"If they stop doing all these things, I will return" the Typhon system to the United States, he added.

Manila and Washington are bound by a mutual defence pact, and the recent South China Sea clashes have sparked fears the US military could be drawn into a war with China.

The Philippine military said this week another of its platoons would be trained on using the Typhon system in February, ahead of annual joint drills with key ally the United States.

Philippines to train with US Typhon missile system next month
Manila (AFP) Jan 28, 2025 - A Philippine platoon will be trained on using a US mid-range missile system next month, ahead of joint drills, Manila's military said Tuesday, in a move that will likely further fuel tensions with China.

The US military deployed the Typhon missile system in the northern Philippines last year as part of an annual joint exercise, but it was not removed after the war games ended.

The system's presence on Philippine soil has angered Beijing, whose forces have engaged in several confrontations with Philippine vessels in recent months over disputed reefs and waters in the South China Sea.

Last month, the Philippine Army said it was planning to acquire the Typhon system as part of a push to secure its maritime interests, sparking warnings from China of a regional "arms race".

A new platoon from the Philippines' Army Artillery Regiment will receive "orientation and familiarisation" training on the system, starting in the second or third week of February, army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala said in a press conference.

The week-long training will involve troops from the 1st Multi-Domain Task Force of the US Army Pacific, Dema-ala added.

"This is a continuation of what we've learned in the first (training) iteration. New units will be involved in the training and a continuation of the previous platoon that was trained last year," Dema-ala said.

"As long as MRC (mid-range missile capability) is here, we maximise its utilisation to train our personnel in new technology," he added.

Dema-ala said the training is in preparation for this year's Salaknib, an annual joint exercise between the Philippines and US armies.

The training location cannot be disclosed, he told reporters, noting that there will be no firing of the Typhon system.

Philippine military spokeswoman Colonel Francel Padilla said moving the launcher from its initial location to a different part of the country is a test "to see how these logistical trains can be transported to certain locations, to certain salient points."

Philippine military officials have said the Typhon system would be able to protect vessels up to 370 kilometres (200 nautical miles) off the coast, the limit of its maritime entitlement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Last week, China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning renewed calls for the Philippines to "stop going further down the wrong path".

"Let me stress again that by bringing this strategic offensive weapon into this part of the world, the Philippines is essentially creating tensions and antagonism in the region and inciting geopolitical confrontation and an arms race," she said.