Philippine defense chief says China could exploit cuts in U.S.-South Korean drills

SEOUL – China could see recent cuts to U.S.-South Korean military exercises as an opportunity to reassert itself in the Indo-Pacific, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said Monday, though he said Washington had assured Manila that its commitments to the Philippines remained unchanged. Speaking on the sidelines of the Seoul Defense Dialogue, Teodoro said there had been no reduction in U.S.-Philippine military activities and that bilateral and multilateral cooperation involving Manila continued to expand. President Donald Trump’s decision last month to scale back military exercises with South Korea has prompted debate among security analysts over the credibility of U.S. deterrence in Asia and whether rivals such as China could perceive a weakening of U.S. resolve.