MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Pentagon official on Monday asked allies in Asia to invest more in their defense and help deter aggression in the region and said the United States remains committed to do the same with “partners, not protectorates.”Elbridge Colby, an undersecretary of defense, made the remarks at a forum in the Philippines, his first stop in Southeast Asia, where he will also visit Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia. He renewed Washington’s assurances that the U.S. is not backing away from Asia despite its current preoccupation with the Iran war and the Middle East.“America is definitely not disengaging from Asia — to the contrary. Our vital national interests dictate our enduring presence here,” Colby told an audience that included foreign diplomats, generals, business executives and journalists.“We are not leaving; in fact, we are digging in, to ensure a favorable balance of power where it matters most,” the Pentagon’s top policy adviser said. “We see Asia as of paramount importance.”
Colby stayed away from the usual U.S. tirade against China’s growing aggression in the region, including in the disputed South China Sea. Washington has often expressed alarm over Beijing’s increasingly hostile actions against Philippine coast guard and naval forces in recent years.Washington has repeatedly warned that it’s obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships or aircraft come under armed attack, including in the South China Sea.
