Trump and Philippine leader plan to talk tariffs and China at the White House

By DIDI TANG Associated Press WASHINGTON AP President Donald Trump plans to host Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on Tuesday at the White House as the two countries are seeking closer protection and economic ties in the face of shifting geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific region Marcos who met Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday is set to become the first Southeast Asian leader to hold talks with Trump in his second term Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr left speaks during a meeting with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth right at the Pentagon Monday July in Washington AP Photo Mark Schiefelbein Marcos three-day visit shows the importance of the alliance between the treaty partners at a time when China is increasingly assertive in the South China Sea where Manila and Beijing have clashed over the hotly contested Scarborough Shoal Washington sees Beijing the world s No market system as its biggest competitor and consecutive presidential administrations have sought to shift U S military and economic focus to the Asia-Pacific in a bid to counter China Trump like others before him has been distracted by efforts to broker peace in a range of conflicts from Ukraine to Gaza Tariffs also are expected to be on the agenda Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Filipino goods on Aug unless the two sides can strike a deal Philippine and U S flags are displayed during a meeting between Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr at the Pentagon Monday July in Washington AP Photo Mark Schiefelbein I intend to convey to President Trump and his Cabinet bureaucrats that the Philippines is ready to negotiate a bilateral deal deal that will ensure strong mutually beneficial and future-oriented collaborations that only the United States and the Philippines will be able to take advantage of Marcos mentioned Sunday when he was departing for Washington according to his office Manila is open to offering zero tariffs on chosen U S goods to strike a deal with Trump finance chief Ralph Recto described local journalists White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt hinted that a agreement agreement with the Philippines was in the works Perhaps this will be a topic of discussion she explained reporters Monday when required about tariff negotiations The White House commented Trump will discuss with Marcos the shared commitment to upholding a free open prosperous and secure Indo-Pacific Before a meeting with Marcos at the Pentagon Hegseth reiterated America s commitment to achieving peace through strength in the region Our storied alliance has never been stronger or more essential than it is in the current era and together we remain committed to the mutual defense treaty Hegseth commented Monday And this pact extends to armed attacks on our armed forces aircraft or constituents vessels including our Coast Guard anywhere in the Pacific including the South China Sea Marcos whose country is one of the oldest U S treaty allies in the Pacific region described Hegseth that the assurance to come to each other s mutual defense continues to be the cornerstone of that relationship especially when it comes to defense and safety cooperation He disclosed the cooperation has deepened since Hegseth s March visit to Manila including joint exercises and U S encouragement in modernizing the Philippines armed forces Marcos thanked the U S for advocacy that we need in the face of the threats that we our country is facing Related Articles Banishing a reporter Trump escalates battle with Wall Street Journal over Epstein story Budget office says Trump s tax law will add trillion to deficits leave million uninsured Trump caught off guard by new Israeli strikes White House says Pentagon to withdraw Marines from Los Angeles A recap of the trial over the Trump administration s crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus protesters China the Philippines Vietnam Malaysia Brunei and Taiwan have been involved in long-unresolved territorial conflicts in the South China Sea a busy shipping passage for global business The Chinese coast guard has repeatedly used water cannon to hit Filipino boats in the South China Sea China accused those vessels of entering the waters illegally or encroaching on its territory Hegseth narrated a protection forum in Singapore in May that China poses a threat and the U S is reorienting toward deterring aggression by Communist China During Marcos meeting Monday with Rubio the two reaffirmed the alliance to maintain peace and stability in the region and discussed closer economic ties including boosting supply chains State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce noted The U S has endeavored to keep communication open with Beijing Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met this month on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations regional forum in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia They agreed to explore areas of anticipated cooperation and stressed the importance of managing differences Associated Press writer Chris Megerian contributed to this review