The Philippines bolstered its network of security partnerships by signing a Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA) with New Zealand, marking another strategic move to counterbalance China’s growing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific, according to AP News.
The pact, inked by Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and New Zealand’s Judith Collins in Manila, establishes a legal framework for joint military exercises, troop deployments, and enhanced defence cooperation between the two nations.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who presided over the signing ceremony, emphasised the growing importance of such partnerships amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea.
These partnerships have become very important in the face of all that is happening.
New Zealand’s Defence Minister Collins framed the agreement as part of a broader commitment to uphold the “rules-based international order,” reinforcing Wellington’s strategic pivot toward Indo-Pacific security. The deal follows similar pacts signed by Manila with the US, Australia, and Japan, drawing sharp criticism from Beijing, which accused regional allies of fostering “Cold War-era bloc confrontations.”
The Philippines is rapidly diversifying its security alliances to strengthen its position against China’s maritime claims. While the New Zealand agreement awaits ratification by the Philippine Senate, negotiations for comparable deals with Canada and France are already underway.
These efforts coincide with increasingly assertive Chinese actions, including water cannon attacks on Philippine resupply missions and mass coastguard deployments near contested reefs. In response, the US and Australia have conducted large-scale drills with Filipino forces, including live-fire exercises near Taiwan and the South China Sea.
