Secretary of War Pete Hegseth met with Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, Jr. on October 31 to reaffirm the U.S.-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty. According to Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell, this was the fourth meeting between Hegseth and Teodoro in 2025, reflecting a sustained partnership between the two countries.
The leaders discussed new measures to strengthen cooperation and improve military readiness. Secretary Hegseth announced the creation of Task Force-Philippines, a joint U.S. task force aimed at increasing operational cooperation, enhancing combined planning, and improving interoperability, especially in the South China Sea.
Both secretaries also confirmed the completion of an action plan intended to modernize their defense partnership and address major priorities over the next two years.
Hegseth and Teodoro emphasized the significance of defense industrial cooperation for shared security interests. They noted progress in public-private partnerships focused on munitions co-production, building on goals outlined in a vision statement released earlier in Manila.
"On October 31, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth met with Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, Jr., to reaffirm their ironclad commitment to the U.S.-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty. The two leaders shared their determination to reestablish deterrence in the region. This was the fourth meeting between Secretary Hegseth and Secretary Teodoro this year, demonstrating the close and continuing partnership between the two allies," said Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell.
"Secretary Hegseth announced the establishment of Task Force-Philippines, a new U.S. Joint Task Force that will increase operational cooperation, improve combined planning, and enhance interoperability, particularly in the South China Sea. The secretaries also announced the completion of an action plan to modernize the defense partnership and accelerate progress on major priorities over the next two years," he added.
"During the meeting, Secretary Hegseth and Secretary Teodoro reaffirmed the importance of defense industrial cooperation for advancing shared security interests. The leaders acknowledged progress in public-private partnership on munitions co-production, building on the priorities in the defense industrial cooperation vision statement that the secretaries released in Manila in March," Parnell stated.
