India and the Philippines have embarked on a new chapter in bilateral relations with special emphasis on bolstering security and economic ties.
The decision to upgrade their relationship, which was announced during the visit of Philippines’ President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to India on August 4-8, comes amid a sharp uptick in security challenges posed by China across Asia and Southeast Asia, particularly in the South China Sea, and growing disquiet over U.S. security commitment to its partners and allies in meeting the China challenge in Asia and the broader Indo-Pacific.
Marcos’ visit coincided with India and the Philippines marking 75 years of diplomatic relations. Bilateral ties have been largely problem-free but were not particularly close during the Cold War decades when the two countries were on opposite sides of the divide. Subsequently, even as India focused on forging stronger economic ties with the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which the Philippines is a part, China emerged as the Philippines’ main partner.
It is only in recent years, in the context of an aggressive China in their neighborhood, that India and the Philippines have recognized an alignment of their security interests.
Speaking at a media event in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed out that while modern diplomatic ties may be recent, India’s civilizational connection with the Philippines goes back centuries. “The Philippine version of the [ancient Hindu epic] Ramayana—’Maharadia Lawana’ is living proof of our deep-rooted cultural bond,” Modi said.
In addition to elevating their relationship to a strategic partnership, the two sides said they would boost their economic partnership by growing bilateral trade from the current $3 billion. To do this, Modi said the two countries would aim to quickly wrap up a review of the India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, first signed in 2009. Separately, India and the Philippines would work towards a bilateral Preferential Trade Agreement, Modi said. Direct flights will connect India and the Philippines to support business and tourism. Both sides have decided to ease visa rules to facilitate tourism.
On security ties, Modi said the defense partnership was a “symbol of the deep mutual trust between our two countries. As maritime nations, cooperation in the maritime domain is both natural and essential.” Modi also referred to the first-ever naval exercises between the two countries that concluded as Marcos arrived in New Delhi. The “bilateral maritime cooperative activity” is said to have taken place near the Scarborough Shoal, a major flashpoint in the maritime dispute between China and the Philippines. India’s interest in the South China Sea stems from the fact that almost 55 percent of its trade passes through the South China Sea and the Malacca Straits.
Modi also welcomed the Philippines’ decision to join the India-based International Fusion Centre, which tracks the movement of ships in the Indian Ocean region. India considers Manila an important part of its Indo-Pacific, Indian Ocean, and ASEAN strategies, Modi added.
“Both countries face a rising challenge from China in freedom of navigation and sea lanes of communication,” Anil Wadhwa, a former Indian foreign ministry official, told The Diplomat. Additionally, “in the case of the Philippines, there is a dispute over islands in the South China Sea.” As for India, “it faces tensions on the land border with China. Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean is growing and their use of Pakistan as a proxy state to challenge the Indian Navy’s presence in the Indian Ocean” are of concern to India. “That is why the Philippines and India are cooperating in maritime domain awareness, naval and coast guards exchanges, and joint exercises,” Wadhwa said.
In his remarks, Marcos said he viewed his India visit as a “reaffirmation” of the “alliance and the partnership that we are strengthening.” He pointed out that what was once referred to as the Asia Pacific region is now being referred to as the Indo-Pacific region, “a correct evolution of that understanding because of the global nature of politics, all of trade and economy.”
Later, Marcos said that the bilateral relationship had entered a “new epoch” with the launch of the strategic partnership between the two countries. The conversation with Modi was “far reaching,” “productive,” and “forward looking,” Marcos said; one of the decisions was the “levelling up” of security cooperation.
The blueprint drawn up for the strategic partnership stated that both countries will intensify dialogue and engagement in the maritime domain, promote coordination between maritime authorities and law enforcement agencies, collaborate in the production of defense equipment, and encourage investments and joint initiatives in defense research and supply chain ecosystem. The blueprint also called for full respect and adherence to international law, particularly on the rights and obligations of States under the 1982 U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and its dispute settlement mechanisms, and expressed concern over coercive and aggressive actions that impact regional peace.
Analysts say the emphasis on security in the India-Philippines partnership is natural, given the Marcos government’s emphasis on territorial defense in the wake of its tensions with China. “While in the past, Philippines-India ties were largely limited to issues of low politics, today, Manila has incorporated India into its security calculations as a credible and trusted defense partner at a time when China has been increasing its provocations and unilateralism in the West Philippine Sea,” former Indian foreign ministry official Anil Trigunayat and Filipino scholar Don Mclain Gill pointed out in a joint article in Firstpost. The Philippines is the first country to which India exported the Russia-India co-produced Brahmos missiles.
Adding another layer of uncertainty to matters in the region are doubts about the U.S. commitment to its Asian allies and partners, especially in the context of Trump insisting that Europe pay for its own defense. Trump’s tariffs have also frayed ties with countries, casting doubts over cooperation in groups like Quad and AUKUS.
“Trump is bringing unpredictability to U.S. behavior in the future in safeguarding the interests of the littoral states in the South China Sea, the Pacific and the Indian Ocean,” diplomat Wadhwa said, adding that countries like the Philippines and Taiwan are unsure whether their interests vis-à-vis China will be sacrificed by the U.S. for what it sees as its own strategic interests.”
Given the many imponderables in the current international scenario, it makes sense for countries with common interests to come together and forge bonds based on shared concerns. India and the Philippines have identified areas of convergence and are now building on those to weather the unpredictability of the times.