US allots $55M to aid sea patrols in Philippines, Indo-Pacific

MANILA, Philippines — The United States has announced $55 million (P3.2 billion) in new funding to strengthen maritime law enforcement in the Philippines and other Indo-Pacific countries

The announcement was made in a September 25 statement by the US State Department after a meeting on maritime security co-hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and counterparts from the Philippines, Australia, Japan, the United Kingdom, and other allies. 

The move is part of a broader push to counter illegal maritime activities and defend freedom of navigation in waters such as the South China Sea. 

More than 35 nations attended the session to "discuss maritime security issues of shared concern," including freedom of navigation and overflight under UNCLOS and greater cooperation in fighting shared maritime threats.

During the talks, Rubio spoke of "the importance of collective efforts to advance a free and open South China Sea, through which trillions of dollars in global trade flow annually," the US State Department said in a statement on Thursday.

The meeting also addressed threats to shipping lanes and critical undersea infrastructure.

According to the State Department, the $55 million package will go to the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pacific Island states, and South Asian maritime nations. 

The funds are aimed at building law enforcement capacity to counter illicit maritime activities, enforce sovereign rights, and interdict illegal fishing and trafficking operations.

The US State Department says this is on top of the $1.5 billion in maritime security assistance it has provided across the Indo-Pacific since 2017.

Details on the Philippines' exact allocation were not immediately available. But a senior State Department official recently told local reporters that one of Washington's priority programs for Manila is in helping Filipino fishermen better monitor and report unauthorized vessels in Philippine waters.   

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The US State Department said the meeting shows a growing diplomatic coalition that shares Washington's interest in preserving the freedoms of navigation and overflight. "These are vital high seas freedoms from which all nations benefit," the statement read.