Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Monday said he is due to have bilateral meetings with his US counterpart, Pete Hegseth, and other partner countries on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and ADMM-Plus, which will be held in Cebu on Wednesday and Thursday.
“Definitely with Secretary Hegseth, we will have a bilateral as well as a Squad meeting,” Teodoro told reporters during an interview in Makati City, referring to Hegseth and the Squad defense grouping composed of the US, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines.
“I will have bilaterals with almost all (ADMM and ADMM-Plus) members, with some exemptions,” Teodoro also said.
The ADMM is scheduled for Wednesday in Lapu-Lapu City, while the ADMM-Plus will take place the following day. The “Plus” countries consist of the US, Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, China, and Russia.
Asked about the topics to be discussed with Hegseth, Teodoro outlined the focus of their upcoming talk.
“Continuing enhancement of defense relations and if we need to add to what we are doing. Probably (we will discuss) if we need to accelerate, decelerate or what have you,” Teodoro explained.
Teodoro noted that regional security and humanitarian assistance and disaster response will be central topics during the ADMM and ADMM-Plus sessions.
“We don’t need to repeat the different issues regarding that, but what is important is intra-ASEAN peace and security. That the primary issue because that’s the foundation of regional security in so far as we are concerned,” Teodoro said.
“There are other sub-issues like critical underwater infrastructure protection and the various working groups on maritime security, on different issues which ASEAN does with its Plus dialogue partners,” Teodoro also said.
Teodoro stated that he is not sure whether China will attend the ADMM-Plus, emphasizing that an invitation was officially transmitted to them.
“I don’t know (if China will attend). They were sent a notice by (defense) undersecretary (Ignacio) Madriaga..I really don’t know. I have not received any word (if China will attend),” Teodoro said.
In a statement, DND spokesman Arsenio Andolong said Teodoro “will lead discussions to advance regional defense dialogue and strengthen cooperation” among ASEAN member states and dialogue partners.
“He is also scheduled to hold meetings with his counterparts to discuss bilateral defense cooperation and matters of mutual interest,” Andolong added.
Andolong noted that the Philippines’ chairship of ASEAN prioritizes regional peace and security, practical defense cooperation, and collective action to address shared challenges.