WEBVTT 00:03.040 --> 00:05.151 Good afternoon everyone and thank you 00:05.151 --> 00:07.373 for being here today . It's my pleasure 00:07.373 --> 00:09.596 to introduce Secretary of Defense Lloyd 00:09.596 --> 00:11.151 Austin the third and senior 00:11.151 --> 00:13.430 undersecretary Jose Faustino , junior 00:13.440 --> 00:15.470 officer in charge . Republic of the 00:15.480 --> 00:17.424 Philippines Department of National 00:17.424 --> 00:19.369 Defense in a moment . They'll both 00:19.369 --> 00:21.536 deliver opening remarks and then we'll 00:21.536 --> 00:23.591 have time for a few questions . I'll 00:23.591 --> 00:25.647 moderate those questions and call on 00:25.647 --> 00:27.702 each journalist . Secretary Austin . 00:27.702 --> 00:29.924 Well , good afternoon everyone , Senior 00:29.924 --> 00:32.810 undersecretary Faustino , I'm delighted 00:32.810 --> 00:35.230 to be able to host you here in Hawaii 00:36.040 --> 00:38.480 and congratulations again on your role 00:38.480 --> 00:40.340 as the leader of the Philippine 00:40.340 --> 00:43.710 Department of National Defense . You've 00:43.710 --> 00:45.766 had an impressive career leading the 00:45.766 --> 00:47.821 Philippine armed forces and I'm very 00:47.821 --> 00:49.877 much looking forward to working with 00:49.877 --> 00:51.360 you in your new role . 00:53.870 --> 00:56.070 This is a terrible time for so many 00:56.070 --> 00:59.430 people living in florida and elsewhere 00:59.440 --> 01:03.370 in harm's way from Hurricane Ian . And 01:03.370 --> 01:05.703 that includes many members of our D . O . 01:05.703 --> 01:08.010 D . Community , including service 01:08.010 --> 01:10.850 members and their families whose lives 01:10.850 --> 01:14.120 have been terribly disrupted . The 01:14.120 --> 01:16.060 Department is working closely to 01:16.060 --> 01:18.760 support fema . The National Guard in 01:18.760 --> 01:21.080 north com to provide urgently needed 01:21.080 --> 01:25.030 support for the communities in the path 01:25.040 --> 01:28.640 of the destruction . I lived in florida 01:28.640 --> 01:31.600 for many years myself and we stand 01:31.600 --> 01:35.350 together with everyone there now senior 01:35.350 --> 01:37.610 undersecretary Faustino let me also 01:37.610 --> 01:40.470 convey my condolences on behalf of the 01:40.470 --> 01:43.150 Department of Defense for all of your 01:43.150 --> 01:45.750 fellow citizens who were also hit hard 01:45.760 --> 01:48.920 by the recent super typhoon that struck 01:48.920 --> 01:49.960 the Philippines . 01:52.630 --> 01:54.810 Now , the Philippines has long been an 01:54.810 --> 01:56.890 invaluable friend and ally to the 01:56.890 --> 01:59.250 United States . In fact , the 01:59.250 --> 02:02.460 Philippines is our oldest treaty ally 02:02.470 --> 02:05.120 in the indo pacific region and the 02:05.120 --> 02:07.630 United States remains unwavering in our 02:07.630 --> 02:10.520 support for a strong and independent 02:10.520 --> 02:12.298 Philippines that can defend its 02:12.298 --> 02:15.100 sovereignty , ensure prosperity for its 02:15.100 --> 02:18.160 people and strengthen security in the 02:18.160 --> 02:21.390 region . Our countries share a vision 02:21.390 --> 02:24.910 of an open , secure and prosperous indo 02:24.910 --> 02:27.950 pacific , free from coercion or 02:27.950 --> 02:31.780 bullying . Now to ensure we're working 02:31.780 --> 02:34.070 together to build that vision . The 02:34.070 --> 02:36.070 Department of Defense conducts more 02:36.070 --> 02:39.360 than 300 bilateral engagements annually 02:39.370 --> 02:41.130 with the armed forces of the 02:41.130 --> 02:44.210 Philippines and that can mean large 02:44.220 --> 02:47.170 major training exercises such as Bella 02:47.170 --> 02:50.730 Catan in april or it can mean ship 02:50.730 --> 02:53.520 visits or exchanges among our experts 02:53.530 --> 02:56.420 on key issues like cyber security . 02:57.540 --> 03:01.060 This cooperation goes on every day and 03:01.060 --> 03:03.020 it supports our alliance and our 03:03.030 --> 03:05.200 obligations under the mutual defense 03:05.200 --> 03:08.570 treaty are us and Philippines . 03:08.570 --> 03:11.700 Visiting forces agreement allows us to 03:11.700 --> 03:15.230 continue working closely together and 03:15.230 --> 03:17.460 it lets us respond quickly to the two 03:17.460 --> 03:21.160 disasters and crisis . So our 03:21.160 --> 03:24.030 commitment to this alliance is ironclad 03:24.550 --> 03:26.670 and it's rooted in more than just 03:26.670 --> 03:30.340 common interest . It's rooted in shared 03:30.350 --> 03:33.860 democratic values as well as 03:33.870 --> 03:37.430 in profound bonds between our peoples . 03:38.420 --> 03:40.031 And this includes the strong 03:40.031 --> 03:41.920 friendships between our country's 03:41.920 --> 03:45.210 uniform personnel and our veteran 03:45.220 --> 03:48.610 communities , in our proud diaspora 03:48.610 --> 03:51.530 communities immeasurably strengthen our 03:51.530 --> 03:54.080 too proud democracies and our 03:54.080 --> 03:57.860 partnership . So during today's meeting , 03:57.870 --> 04:00.050 senior undersecretary Faustino and I 04:00.050 --> 04:03.710 discuss ways that we can deepen our 04:03.710 --> 04:07.300 already robust cooperation . We 04:07.300 --> 04:09.360 discussed several priority areas for 04:09.360 --> 04:12.340 the alliance , including strengthening 04:12.350 --> 04:14.461 our mutual defense treaty commitments 04:15.560 --> 04:19.170 in enhancing maritime cooperation in 04:19.170 --> 04:21.337 building on our mutual defense posture 04:21.337 --> 04:24.480 and improving interoperability and 04:24.480 --> 04:27.720 information sharing . By deepening our 04:27.720 --> 04:29.670 cooperation and modernizing our 04:29.670 --> 04:32.450 alliance . We can help secure the 04:32.450 --> 04:36.180 Philippines future tackle regional 04:36.180 --> 04:39.530 challenges and promote peace and 04:39.540 --> 04:43.520 security in the indo pacific and so 04:43.520 --> 04:45.850 I'm proud to stand shoulder to shoulder 04:45.850 --> 04:48.650 with the Philippines to bring our 04:48.650 --> 04:52.240 countries even closer together and to 04:52.240 --> 04:55.830 defend our shared values and to 04:55.830 --> 04:57.600 strengthen the rules based 04:57.610 --> 04:59.890 international order that makes the 04:59.890 --> 05:02.750 region safer and more prosperous . 05:03.760 --> 05:07.130 So undersecretary Faustino thanks again 05:07.130 --> 05:09.930 for your leadership and partnership and 05:09.930 --> 05:12.041 now I'll turn it over to you for your 05:12.041 --> 05:14.380 remarks . Thank you Secretary Austin . 05:16.170 --> 05:18.440 Good afternoon to everyone . The 05:18.440 --> 05:21.470 Philippines and the United States have 05:21.470 --> 05:24.720 a shared history spanning more than 70 05:24.720 --> 05:27.980 years as friends , partners and allies . 05:27.990 --> 05:30.920 In those years our cooperation in 05:30.920 --> 05:33.780 political , economic and social 05:33.780 --> 05:37.430 cultural relations has expanded and our 05:37.430 --> 05:39.810 ties including that between our defense 05:39.810 --> 05:42.390 establishments have continued to grow 05:42.390 --> 05:45.480 stronger . The Philippines defense and 05:45.480 --> 05:47.480 security engagement with the United 05:47.480 --> 05:50.470 States remains a key pillar of 05:50.470 --> 05:53.180 Philippines , us bilateral relations 05:53.180 --> 05:54.847 and we appreciate the U . S . 05:54.847 --> 05:56.958 Government's willingness to work with 05:56.958 --> 05:59.650 the Philippine government as an equal 05:59.660 --> 06:02.900 sovereign partner . Our two countries 06:02.900 --> 06:05.067 are working together to reach a common 06:05.067 --> 06:07.770 understanding of the importance of our 06:07.770 --> 06:10.400 defense alliance and what it means to 06:10.400 --> 06:12.567 recognize each other as equal partners 06:12.567 --> 06:15.310 in advancing our respective countries 06:15.320 --> 06:17.870 interests and in promoting peace and 06:17.870 --> 06:20.930 prosperity in the region . This 06:20.940 --> 06:23.760 meeting comes at the culmination of the 06:23.760 --> 06:26.290 planning cycle of our bilateral defense 06:26.290 --> 06:29.240 activities for next year ? The 06:29.240 --> 06:30.962 bilateral meeting we held this 06:30.962 --> 06:33.440 afternoon was a welcome opportunity to 06:33.440 --> 06:35.390 discuss the way ahead for the 06:35.390 --> 06:38.480 Philippines US alliance based on the 06:38.480 --> 06:40.960 current priorities of our respective 06:40.960 --> 06:43.530 administrations . As discussed during 06:43.530 --> 06:45.752 the recent meeting between Philippine , 06:45.752 --> 06:47.752 President Ferdinand Ramadi's market 06:47.752 --> 06:50.080 junior and U . S . President joseph R . 06:50.080 --> 06:52.580 Biden in new york . Our meeting 06:52.580 --> 06:55.030 highlighted the importance of the 06:55.030 --> 06:57.252 bilateral defense relations between the 06:57.252 --> 06:59.474 Philippines and the U . S . And we were 06:59.474 --> 07:01.500 able to discuss forward looking , 07:01.510 --> 07:04.480 practical and tangible ways on how to 07:04.480 --> 07:06.710 empower our partnership through 07:06.710 --> 07:08.766 improving defense cooperation across 07:08.766 --> 07:11.900 various lines of efforts as well as 07:11.900 --> 07:14.370 increasing interoperability and 07:14.370 --> 07:16.370 information sharing between our two 07:16.370 --> 07:18.970 armed forces . With the end view of 07:18.970 --> 07:22.590 further enhancing the credibility of 07:22.590 --> 07:25.920 our alliance . Thank you . Secretary 07:25.920 --> 07:28.340 Austin , senior undersecretary Faustino , 07:28.340 --> 07:30.451 thank you very much , gentlemen . Our 07:30.451 --> 07:32.507 first question will go to NBC News . 07:32.900 --> 07:34.900 Thank you both for joining us . Two 07:34.900 --> 07:37.067 questions for Secretary Austin . First 07:37.067 --> 07:39.850 on the military pipeline , they don't 07:39.850 --> 07:42.920 call the incident sabotaged over 19 . 07:44.170 --> 07:47.640 Are you concerned that this is possibly 07:47.650 --> 07:49.872 pursuing more aggressive hybrid warfare 07:49.872 --> 07:52.640 against NATO and the US discussing with 07:52.640 --> 07:55.280 new allies to provide more security for 07:55.290 --> 07:57.512 energy and infrastructure , given these 07:57.512 --> 07:59.623 explosions at the pipeline . And then 07:59.623 --> 08:01.990 the second question there's a report 08:01.990 --> 08:04.101 out saying that the pentagon plans to 08:04.101 --> 08:06.101 set up the to arm Ukraine . Can you 08:06.101 --> 08:08.157 confirm this ? Reported that they're 08:08.157 --> 08:10.101 reviewing plans to set up this new 08:10.101 --> 08:11.934 command And finally , is this an 08:11.934 --> 08:14.101 acknowledgement that the current phase 08:14.101 --> 08:16.212 of Russia's invasion was going to the 08:16.212 --> 08:20.180 last few years ? Thanks moshe . Uh 08:20.190 --> 08:22.400 That was about eight questions as I as 08:22.400 --> 08:25.130 I counted them . But uh to your first 08:25.130 --> 08:28.070 question in terms of 08:28.740 --> 08:32.530 the attack or the 08:32.540 --> 08:36.470 damage to the pipeline um at this point 08:36.470 --> 08:39.480 I think there's a lot of speculation , 08:39.490 --> 08:43.320 but quite frankly , until complete 08:43.330 --> 08:46.560 investigation has done , uh no one will 08:46.560 --> 08:49.640 be able to really uh determine for 08:49.640 --> 08:51.840 certain what happened . I had the 08:51.840 --> 08:53.451 opportunity to speak with my 08:53.451 --> 08:56.360 counterpart in uh in Denmark yesterday , 08:56.370 --> 09:00.080 we talked about uh what 09:00.090 --> 09:03.740 uh what happened uh and uh and he 09:03.950 --> 09:05.839 pointed out to me that it will be 09:05.839 --> 09:09.180 several days before . Uh he's able to 09:09.190 --> 09:12.930 uh get the right team in to uh 09:12.940 --> 09:15.300 look at the sights and really try to 09:15.300 --> 09:17.790 determine as best possible what 09:17.790 --> 09:20.650 happened . Uh And so until that until 09:20.650 --> 09:23.630 we get uh further information are able 09:23.630 --> 09:25.797 to do further analysis . Uh You know , 09:25.797 --> 09:28.200 we won't speculate on who may have been 09:28.210 --> 09:32.210 responsible uh And certainly I 09:32.210 --> 09:34.950 offered uh to provide any assistance 09:34.950 --> 09:38.240 that the United States uh may provide . 09:38.250 --> 09:40.270 Uh And most , can you repeat your 09:40.270 --> 09:42.750 second question there again Again , 09:42.760 --> 09:44.982 there was a report that came out saying 09:44.982 --> 09:47.204 that the Pentagon plans to set up a new 09:47.204 --> 09:49.316 command to arm Ukraine were wondering 09:49.316 --> 09:51.482 if you can confirm that report or that 09:51.482 --> 09:53.649 you're reviewing plans to stand to set 09:53.649 --> 09:55.690 up a new command ? And is this an 09:55.690 --> 09:57.857 acknowledgement that the current phase 09:57.857 --> 10:00.410 of Russia's invasion is gonna last for 10:00.410 --> 10:03.200 a long time ? I would just simply point 10:03.200 --> 10:07.070 out most that as you've seen us do over 10:07.070 --> 10:11.040 time we have continued to look for ways 10:11.050 --> 10:13.190 along with our international partners 10:13.200 --> 10:16.230 uh to provide continue to provide 10:16.240 --> 10:18.980 additional security assistance to 10:18.990 --> 10:21.730 Ukraine . Whether that assistance is in 10:21.730 --> 10:25.290 the form of uh actual equipment or or 10:25.300 --> 10:27.590 legit other logistical support or 10:27.590 --> 10:30.310 training , we continue to evaluate what 10:30.310 --> 10:32.610 will be needed and and make provisions 10:32.610 --> 10:36.130 to uh to provide that um that 10:36.140 --> 10:38.620 security assistance . And so that will 10:38.630 --> 10:40.890 that will be ongoing . And in terms of 10:40.890 --> 10:42.950 how long the conflict could last , 10:42.960 --> 10:44.849 don't want to speculate on that . 10:44.849 --> 10:46.960 Either . What I will tell you is that 10:46.960 --> 10:49.180 uh we will continue to support Ukraine 10:49.180 --> 10:51.291 as you've heard our president say for 10:51.291 --> 10:53.291 as long as it takes and I know that 10:53.291 --> 10:55.470 just based upon what I see in the 10:55.470 --> 10:59.200 Ukraine uh defense uh contact 10:59.200 --> 11:01.280 groups that you know we host every 11:01.280 --> 11:04.170 month . We host it on here earlier this 11:04.170 --> 11:06.059 month and then we'll have another 11:06.059 --> 11:09.240 session in september and october But 11:09.250 --> 11:11.650 what I see in those sessions is a 11:11.650 --> 11:13.317 commitment on the part of our 11:13.317 --> 11:17.000 international uh partners to continue 11:17.000 --> 11:19.410 to provide support for as long as it 11:19.410 --> 11:22.060 takes . Thanks . Thanks . Our next 11:22.070 --> 11:23.959 question will go to sylvie agency 11:23.959 --> 11:27.930 France Presse . Thank you . Mr 11:28.620 --> 11:31.560 I have a question for you . Um given 11:31.570 --> 11:34.120 the Philippines are geographically 11:34.130 --> 11:37.930 close to Taiwan and that your 11:37.940 --> 11:41.130 country is pretty ally of the United 11:41.130 --> 11:44.020 States , Would the Philippines be ready 11:44.030 --> 11:47.220 to make the U . S . To defend Taiwan in 11:47.220 --> 11:50.170 case of chinese aggression ? And I have 11:50.170 --> 11:54.040 a question for you sir . Uh nobody 11:54.050 --> 11:57.680 in the West is going to recognize the 11:57.690 --> 12:01.320 relaxation of Ukrainian regions 12:01.330 --> 12:04.140 by Moscow . And the Ukrainians 12:04.150 --> 12:06.372 themselves have said that they're going 12:06.372 --> 12:09.170 to keep fighting to reclaim them . 12:09.180 --> 12:13.130 So aren't you concerned that the 12:13.140 --> 12:16.020 West is cornering putting 12:16.030 --> 12:18.740 into a nuclear option ? 12:21.160 --> 12:24.140 Thank you for that question on the 12:24.140 --> 12:28.070 tensions over the uh Taiwan strait . 12:28.080 --> 12:30.980 I would like to emphasize the statement 12:30.980 --> 12:34.930 of our president on the 12:34.940 --> 12:37.040 principle guiding Philippine foreign 12:37.040 --> 12:40.040 policy is always peace . And the 12:40.040 --> 12:41.929 Philippines is concerned with the 12:41.929 --> 12:44.550 recent security developments in Taiwan 12:44.560 --> 12:47.200 in the Taiwan strait particularly which 12:47.200 --> 12:51.160 is uh just near our territory . 12:51.170 --> 12:55.110 And uh while the Philippines adheres to 12:55.110 --> 12:57.450 the one china policy , we urge all 12:57.450 --> 13:00.280 concerned parties to exercise restraint 13:00.290 --> 13:02.346 and that diplomacy and dialogue must 13:02.346 --> 13:05.690 prevail in view of the volatile 13:05.690 --> 13:09.360 situation in the cross straits , the 13:09.360 --> 13:11.416 Philippines immediate concern is the 13:11.416 --> 13:13.249 safety of course of our overseas 13:13.249 --> 13:15.330 Filipino workers in Taiwan which at 13:15.340 --> 13:17.630 this point is numbering around 130 13:17.630 --> 13:21.570 150,000 overseas Filipino workers and 13:21.570 --> 13:24.330 we continue to update and enhance our 13:24.340 --> 13:26.890 contingency plans , it is also 13:26.890 --> 13:29.600 imperative to regularly update and 13:29.600 --> 13:32.240 exercise the Philippines us , the 13:32.250 --> 13:34.540 mutual defense concept plan . Under the 13:34.540 --> 13:36.484 ambit of the mutual defense treaty 13:36.484 --> 13:38.500 based on our dynamic security 13:38.500 --> 13:39.944 environment . Thank you . 13:41.240 --> 13:44.090 Sylvie in 13:45.300 --> 13:47.220 with respect to your question on 13:47.220 --> 13:49.660 whether or not we are cornering Putin 13:49.670 --> 13:53.620 into employing a nuclear option . 13:54.590 --> 13:57.820 Um I would just say that we and our 13:57.820 --> 13:59.931 allies , as I said earlier , Sylvia , 13:59.931 --> 14:03.770 we're committed to Uh supporting help 14:03.780 --> 14:07.490 supporting Ukraine uh to in its efforts 14:07.490 --> 14:10.060 to defend its sovereign territory will 14:10.060 --> 14:12.370 continue to do that . But in terms of 14:12.380 --> 14:16.070 the options that Mr Putin has uh one 14:16.070 --> 14:18.580 significant option that he's always had 14:18.590 --> 14:21.730 that is to end this conflict today to 14:21.730 --> 14:25.560 withdraw from Ukraine . And uh and you 14:25.560 --> 14:27.850 know that option existed day one . It 14:27.850 --> 14:30.680 exists now . And so he will always have 14:30.680 --> 14:32.902 an option and I hope hope that he would 14:32.902 --> 14:35.013 he would exercise that option here in 14:35.013 --> 14:37.090 the near future . And uh and and 14:37.090 --> 14:39.260 bringing in to the need list 14:39.270 --> 14:43.270 uh devastation that we've seen thus 14:43.270 --> 14:45.870 far ? Thank you gentlemen . Uh Next 14:45.870 --> 14:48.203 question will go to Rio Nakamura Nikkei , 14:48.770 --> 14:50.659 thank you very much for taking my 14:50.659 --> 14:53.510 questions uh to the secretary first . 14:53.520 --> 14:56.100 Uh the U . S . And the Philippines have 14:56.110 --> 14:58.020 worked together to maintain the 14:58.430 --> 15:00.800 organization in the South china sea for 15:00.800 --> 15:04.030 a long time . But China has also 15:04.030 --> 15:07.150 stepped up its military activity in and 15:07.160 --> 15:09.970 around the Taiwan threat including uh 15:09.980 --> 15:12.880 the uh the Philippines . So do you 15:12.880 --> 15:16.330 think that objective of us Philippine 15:16.340 --> 15:19.300 defense cooperation should include 15:19.310 --> 15:21.830 maintaining peace and stability in the 15:21.840 --> 15:25.000 Taiwan way . And secondly from North 15:25.000 --> 15:28.840 Korea , North Korea has North Korea 15:28.850 --> 15:31.550 launched ballistic missiles three times 15:31.560 --> 15:34.150 this week . How much are you concerned 15:34.150 --> 15:37.460 that North Korea will also form that 15:37.470 --> 15:40.740 nuclear test soon And to this to the 15:40.740 --> 15:44.510 senior undersecretary uh china has 15:44.520 --> 15:46.990 maintained effective control in the 15:47.000 --> 15:49.480 south China sea . And I'm wondering 15:49.490 --> 15:52.560 what was the next steps the U . S . And 15:52.560 --> 15:54.920 the Philippines will take to enhance 15:54.920 --> 15:57.540 the security in the south China sea . 15:57.550 --> 16:01.160 Thank you very much . Um Rio as you 16:01.160 --> 16:04.580 have rightly pointed out , we remain 16:04.590 --> 16:07.910 committed to uh maintaining 16:07.920 --> 16:11.910 uh and open uh and free uh 16:11.920 --> 16:14.031 indo pacific region . We will want to 16:14.031 --> 16:16.087 maintain the ability to sell the the 16:16.087 --> 16:18.970 seas and and navigate the skies 16:18.980 --> 16:22.920 uh as we should be allowed to do and we 16:22.920 --> 16:25.198 will continue to work towards that end . 16:25.198 --> 16:28.940 Uh And uh in terms 16:28.940 --> 16:31.740 of uh the Taiwan strait , you've heard 16:31.740 --> 16:34.900 us say a number of times that that we 16:34.900 --> 16:37.630 are we we don't want to see any type of 16:37.630 --> 16:40.890 unilateral change to to the status quo 16:40.900 --> 16:43.550 uh in the in the Taiwan strait and so 16:43.560 --> 16:46.420 but we are focused on making sure that 16:46.420 --> 16:49.590 we are working together to ensure that 16:49.600 --> 16:53.240 that we maintain a free and open 16:53.250 --> 16:56.370 uh indo pacific on the issue of North 16:56.370 --> 16:59.990 Korea . Um We remain focused on 17:00.000 --> 17:02.990 making sure that you know , we do 17:03.000 --> 17:04.850 everything we can to continue to 17:04.850 --> 17:07.590 strengthen our our alliance with uh 17:07.600 --> 17:09.322 with the R . O . K . We remain 17:09.322 --> 17:11.550 committed to the protection and the 17:11.550 --> 17:14.190 defense of the rok and we'll continue 17:14.190 --> 17:16.540 to work with our with our allies there 17:16.550 --> 17:20.170 and also with with other uh allies in 17:20.170 --> 17:21.948 the region like that , like the 17:21.948 --> 17:24.160 Japanese . Uh so that will remain our 17:24.160 --> 17:27.600 focus going forward . Yes , thank you 17:27.600 --> 17:31.280 for our next steps for next steps uh 17:32.260 --> 17:34.427 concerning the West Philippine sea and 17:34.427 --> 17:38.230 the South China sea . Uh The 17:38.240 --> 17:40.570 Philippines underscores the importance 17:40.570 --> 17:43.100 of diplomacy and dialogue for the 17:43.100 --> 17:45.322 peaceful resolution of the these issues 17:45.322 --> 17:47.580 in the south china sea . This includes 17:47.590 --> 17:51.270 uh continuing continuous uh engagement 17:51.270 --> 17:53.800 with china in both bilateral and 17:53.800 --> 17:56.970 multilateral platforms or multilateral 17:56.980 --> 17:59.740 dialogues without prejudice of course , 17:59.740 --> 18:01.962 to the Philippines position in the West 18:01.962 --> 18:04.130 Philippine sea uh to facilitate 18:04.140 --> 18:06.210 facilitate mutual trust and 18:06.220 --> 18:09.420 understanding uh admittedly the 18:09.420 --> 18:12.460 volatile situation in the south china 18:12.460 --> 18:14.920 and the West Philippine sea remains as 18:14.920 --> 18:17.253 the Philippines former security concern . 18:17.253 --> 18:20.390 And uh as it is right now we continue 18:20.390 --> 18:22.620 to engage with like minded countries 18:22.630 --> 18:26.130 and uh make sure that the rule of law 18:26.140 --> 18:28.362 and the rules based international order 18:28.362 --> 18:30.584 will prevail in the West Philippine sea 18:30.584 --> 18:32.640 in the south china sea . Thank you . 18:32.640 --> 18:34.640 Thank you gentlemen . And our final 18:34.640 --> 18:36.807 question will go to Jim Garman D . O . 18:36.807 --> 18:40.770 D . News Mr . Secretary promised one 18:40.770 --> 18:43.290 question uh in the past , you talked 18:43.300 --> 18:46.570 places not bases . Does that still 18:46.570 --> 18:50.310 hold and for uh Minister 18:51.160 --> 18:53.450 in light of all that china is doing . 18:53.460 --> 18:55.950 What's the one thing that the 18:55.960 --> 18:58.380 Philippines needs from the United 18:58.380 --> 19:01.090 States . What would do your country the 19:01.100 --> 19:04.950 most good . So jim we today we 19:04.950 --> 19:08.140 had a robust dialogue on positioning 19:08.140 --> 19:10.950 the alliance to address emerging 19:10.950 --> 19:14.720 challenges , challenges uh you know we 19:14.720 --> 19:16.498 fought together , we've trained 19:16.498 --> 19:19.900 together uh and uh and so we we 19:19.900 --> 19:23.160 consider ourselves we were allies but 19:23.160 --> 19:25.382 we consider ourselves to be more family 19:25.382 --> 19:27.493 than anything else . And I'm proud to 19:27.493 --> 19:29.716 proud to say that you've heard me say a 19:29.716 --> 19:32.150 couple of times that that I cannot 19:32.160 --> 19:35.740 imagine a day when the United States 19:35.750 --> 19:38.270 and uh and the Philippines aren't 19:38.280 --> 19:41.370 allies , it's it's who we are . And 19:41.370 --> 19:43.592 again I consider us to be more family . 19:43.592 --> 19:46.130 But today we agreed on a number of ways 19:46.130 --> 19:49.790 to continue to grow that cooperation um 19:49.800 --> 19:52.050 as you know , we we've been able to 19:52.050 --> 19:54.190 move forward on visiting forces 19:54.190 --> 19:57.420 agreement . And uh and we discussed the 19:57.420 --> 20:00.250 E . D . C . A . Which it's critical to 20:00.260 --> 20:02.900 our alliance cooperation and 20:02.910 --> 20:05.680 strengthening our combined capabilities . 20:05.690 --> 20:09.350 So uh to answer your question uh 20:09.360 --> 20:13.210 places are really really important but 20:13.220 --> 20:15.880 uh but you know it's it's about the 20:15.880 --> 20:18.102 engagement , it's about the opportunity 20:18.102 --> 20:20.370 to work together . Uh and uh and that 20:20.370 --> 20:22.537 was really the focus of our discussion 20:22.537 --> 20:25.410 today . Yes thank you . The Philippines , 20:25.410 --> 20:27.466 defense and security engagement with 20:27.466 --> 20:30.240 the U . S . Remains the key pillar of 20:30.250 --> 20:33.580 the Philippine us bilateral relations . 20:33.590 --> 20:36.390 You know , like we continue to stand by 20:36.390 --> 20:40.260 the Philippine us mutual 20:40.260 --> 20:42.680 defense treaty and it has been the 20:42.680 --> 20:46.460 basis of the national defense policy 20:46.470 --> 20:49.390 of our country . And 20:50.590 --> 20:54.430 we look forward after this uh 20:54.440 --> 20:56.890 bilateral meeting that we had of a more 20:56.890 --> 20:59.950 robust cooperation particularly in 20:59.960 --> 21:03.190 in issues pertaining uh 21:03.730 --> 21:06.660 external threats to to our country , 21:06.670 --> 21:09.500 and coming up 21:09.500 --> 21:12.220 with coming up with 21:13.440 --> 21:16.020 other avenues of cooperation where we 21:16.020 --> 21:18.640 could discuss matters . We could 21:18.640 --> 21:22.050 discuss things with mutual interest , 21:22.060 --> 21:25.570 too , to to to the U . S . And the 21:25.570 --> 21:29.220 Philippines . Secretary Austin , 21:29.230 --> 21:31.397 senior under Secretary Fassino . Thank 21:31.397 --> 21:33.563 you very much . Gentlemen , ladies and 21:33.563 --> 21:35.563 gentlemen , this is all the time we 21:35.563 --> 21:35.170 have available for today . Thank you 21:35.170 --> 21:36.140 very much for coming .