Developing a Credible Defense Posture for the Philippines

From the Aquino to the Duterte Administrations

Dados Bibliográficos

ID6040683
AutoresRenato Cruz De Castro (0000-0002-6320-2940, De La Salle University, autor correspondente)
Ano2017
Volume9
Fascículo4
Páginas541-563
Data de publicação2017-10-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoAsian Politics & Policy (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 1943-0787 • E-ISSN: 1943-0779
EditoraWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/aspp.12353
OpenAlexW2766142896
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas8
Referências citadas3

Since 2011, the Aquino administration has bolstered the development of a credible external defense posture of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the face of China's territorial expansion in the South China Sea. This move entailed the upgrading of the Philippine Navy's and the Philippine Air Force's capabilities for maritime domain awareness and naval interdiction. The Aquino administration also anchored its strategic agenda on the 60‐year‐old Philippines‐U.S. alliance by signing the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). The election of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte as the 16th president of the Philippines, however, generated uncertainties on whether or not he will continue building the AFP's territorial defense capabilities. Eventually, Duterte decided to continue the Aquino administration's build‐up as a hedge, in case he should find it imperative in the future to pursue his predecessor's policy of challenging China's expansive claim in the South China Sea. The article concludes that like Aquino's security policy, the Duterte administration is also committed to building up the Philippine military's credible defense posture—in light of the growing uncertainties in the region marked by China's emergence and the perceived retreat of the United States as a Pacific power

Administration (probate law · Alliance · Business · China · Expansive · Interdiction · International trade · Navy · Political science · Economic Zones and Regional Development · Engineering · International Maritime Law Issues · Law · Maritime Security and History · Public Administration