<a class="post__byline-name-unhyphenated" href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/author/associated-press" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person" itemprop="author"> <span itemprop="name">Associated Press</span> </a> <a class="post__byline-name-hyphenated" href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/author/associated-press"> Associated Press </a> <br>Leave your feedback<br>WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that U.S. defense commitment was “ironclad” as he gathered Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the White House on Thursday in the midst of growing concern about provocative Chinese military action in the Indo-Pacific.<br><strong>Watch the briefing the player above.</strong><br>“The United States defense commitments to Japan and to the Philippines are ironclad. They’re ironclad,” Biden said as he began three-way talks at the White House with Kishida and Marcos. “As I said before, any attack on Philippine aircraft, vessels or armed forces in the South China Sea would invoke our mutual defense treaty.”<br>The White House summit was called amid growing concern about provocative Chinese action in the Pacific, which will be a large focus of the leaders’ talks. The White House sees the summit as countering China’s attempts at “intimidation” and sending a message that China is “the outlier in the neighborhood,” according to an administration official.<br><span>By</span> Alanna Durkin Richer, Colleen Long, Associated Press<br><span>By</span> Associated Press<br> <a class="post__byline-name-unhyphenated" href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/author/associated-press" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/Person" itemprop="author"> <span itemprop="name">Associated Press</span> </a> <a class="post__byline-name-hyphenated" href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/author/associated-press"> Associated Press </a> <br> <span>Support Provided By:</span> <a href="https://help.pbs.org/support/solutions/articles/5000677869" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Learn more</a> <br>Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else.<br>Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.<br>© 1996 - 2024 NewsHour Productions LLC. All Rights Reserved.<br>Sections<br>About<br>Stay Connected<br>Subscribe to ‘Here's the Deal,’ our politics newsletter<br>Thank you. Please check your inbox to confirm.<br>Learn more about Friends of the NewsHour.<br>Support for NewsHour Provided By<br><br><a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMihQFodHRwczovL3d3dy5wYnMub3JnL25ld3Nob3VyL3BvbGl0aWNzL3dhdGNoLWxpdmUtd2hpdGUtaG91c2UtaG9sZHMtbmV3cy1icmllZmluZy1hcy1iaWRlbi1tZWV0cy13aXRoLWxlYWRlcnMtb2YtamFwYW4tYW5kLXBoaWxpcHBpbmVz0gGJAWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnBicy5vcmcvbmV3c2hvdXIvYW1wL3BvbGl0aWNzL3dhdGNoLWxpdmUtd2hpdGUtaG91c2UtaG9sZHMtbmV3cy1icmllZmluZy1hcy1iaWRlbi1tZWV0cy13aXRoLWxlYWRlcnMtb2YtamFwYW4tYW5kLXBoaWxpcHBpbmVz?oc=5">source</a>
