US Ally To Upgrade Front-Line Bases Against China's Military Moves
The Philippine air force has announced plans to upgrade “strategic” bases on two islands contested by China as the country pursues military modernization amid territorial tensions with its powerful neighbor.
The U.S. treaty ally will also acquire long-range patrol aircraft, additional Black Hawk medium-lift transport helicopters, Bell 412EPX helicopters frequently used for search-and-rescue missions, and advanced surveillance radar to improve maritime monitoring, Air Force chief Liutenant General Arthur Cordura said Wednesday during an event marking the service’s 79th anniversary.
The aircraft will boost the country’s ability to monitor and respond to the uptick in Chinese coast guard and naval vessels operating in Manila-claimed waters.
The Philippines maintains a decades-old mutual defense treaty with the United States, and rising tensions have raised questions over the risk of Washington being drawn into a confrontation with nuclear-armed China.
New Outposts in Disputed Waters
The two islands Cordura named for the strategic bases include Thitu Island, known in Manila as Pag-asa and in Beijing as Zhongye Dao. Thitu is the second-largest naturally occurring island in the South China Sea‘s Spratly Islands and the only one in the island group with a permanent civilian population and a Philippine military base.
The other is Santa Ana, in the northern Philippine province of Cagayan, which sits near the Luzon Strait, a strategic chokepoint close to Beijing-claimed Taiwan that would be key to U.S. efforts to block Chinese forces from entering the open Pacific in the event of a conflict.
Santa Ana is also one of four sites designated under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which allows U.S. forces rotational access to Philippine military bases while supporting joint training, equipment storage and infrastructure upgrades.
“The Air Force remains committed to modernization despite challenges, with greater focus on mission readiness, interoperability with allies, and building a credible multi-domain force,” Cordura said.
Newsweek reached out by email to the Armed Forces of the Philippines and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command with requests for comment.
US-Philippine Cooperation
The U.S. under President Donald Trump has continued to deepen military cooperation with the Philippines, from the largest-ever edition of their annual Balikatan wargames in May, to the deployment of U.S. ship-killing missiles, to recent U.S. Coast Guard patrols alongside Philippine navy and coast guard ships near another contested feature-China-controlled Scarborough Shoal.
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Maritime Boundaries of the Philippines
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Beijing has frequently protested growing U.S. engagement with the Philippines, which it has characterized as a pawn in Washington’s efforts to contain China.
Yet the United States has not fully committed to direct military intervention, some Chinese analysts argue.
“Although U.S. forces have sharply increased their presence and deployments in the Philippines, these assets possess limited wartime utility, especially against a high-end opponent such as China,” the Beijing-based, state-affiliated South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative said in an analysis released Wednesday.
“The main purpose of this strengthened military access is not genuine preparation for war, but rather strategic posturing, containment, and attrition: exploiting the Philippines’ geographical advantages to bolster U.S. force posture around the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait, shaping a favorable overall strategic environment, and using the Philippines to wear down China during peacetime,” the report said.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: John Feng and Tony Phillips
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This story was originally published July 2, 2026 at 9:34 AM.