US touts ‘ironclad’ commitment to the Philippines amid rising tensions in South China Sea

US President Joe Biden met his Philippine counterpart Ferdinand Marcos Jnr at the White House on May 1, 2023. The Philippine leader is on a state visit to the US, and his meeting with Biden comes amid a series of recent incidents with Beijing in the disputed South China Sea. Biden pledged to strengthen US military ties with Manila, just over a week after the two countries held their largest-ever joint war drills.