Advancing American Safety, Strength, and Prosperity in Southeast Asia

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is on travel to Manila, Philippines, July 21-23 to engage with ASEAN and regional leaders to advance the United States' vision for a Free and Open Indo-Pacific, reaffirm U.S. commitment to ASEAN centrality, and strengthen the U.S.-Philippine alliance. The U.S.-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has helped Southeast Asia to grow and prosper while creating opportunities for Americans and American businesses. Recognizing the strategic importance of Southeast Asia to the future of American security and prosperity, the United States is investing over $2.5 billion to strengthen security cooperation, build strategic infrastructure, advance technology-related cooperation, bolster energy security, and combat transnational crime in Southeast Asia.

Advancing Technology of the Future in Southeast Asia

• U.S.-ASEAN AI SPARK: Working with Congress, the United States will make Southeast Asia a focus for American AI exports, which will accelerate the region's digital transformation and economic growth. To achieve this, the United States is launching a new Pax Silica initiative, AI SPARK, which will support American AI exports in the region by providing financial and technical support to Southeast Asian governments interested in deploying the U.S. AI stack for public-sector applications.
• Philippines Trusted Technology Roadmap: The United States, working with Congress, plans to provide $10 million to substantially strengthen how the Philippines' critical information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure is secured and modernized.

Bolstering Energy Security in Southeast Asia

• Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Threshold Program: The MCC Board approved a $60 million Threshold Program grant to the Philippines to enable energy sector investment, strengthen energy institutions, and expand opportunities for American commercial engagement.
• Securing Critical Minerals Supply Chains in the Mekong: In support of the Mekong-U.S. Partnership, the United States, working with Congress, is securing critical mineral supply chains through $17 million in funding toward the Mekong Minerals Partnership.
• Advancing Energy Infrastructure and Energy Security: Through the Japan-U.S.-Mekong Power Partnership (JUMPP), the United States, working with Congress, intends to provide $5 million to develop regional power markets, promote LNG market development, deploy U.S. grid technologies, and strengthen capacity for reliable energy infrastructure and cross-border electricity trade across Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• Philippines Critical Minerals Support: The United States, working with Congress, plans to provide $4 million to drive mining projects toward investment and offtake and to help identify investment-scale opportunities.

Investing Strategically in Southeast Asian Infrastructure

• Developing Energy Infrastructure in the Indo-Pacific: The United States is investing $1.5 billion to establish an investment platform to facilitate the buildout of energy security infrastructure across the Indo-Pacific. This deal represents the single largest project investment in the International Development Finance Corporation's (DFC) history.
• Strategic Infrastructure Investments: The United States announced plans to work with Congress to provide over $100 million in strategic assistance for infrastructure and other investments in the Philippines, focused on Subic Bay in the Luzon Economic Corridor. The Department will fund upgrades including port facilities and a fuel storage terminal with 120+ million liters of capacity.

Combating Crime and Enhancing Law Enforcement Cooperation

• Combating Transnational Crime: The United States plans to provide $2.5 million to unite ASEAN countries through tailored interventions against scams, cybercrime, drug trafficking, and money laundering.
• Philippines Coast Guard Pier: The United States is providing $9 million to expand a Philippine Coast Guard Pier in Palawan to enhance Philippine maritime law enforcement presence and sustain operations in the South China Sea.

Delivering U.S. Commercial Deals

• Philippine Airlines and Boeing: The United States welcomes the recent announcement by Philippine Airlines of its intent to purchase up to 20 Boeing 787 aircraft powered by GE Aerospace GEnx engines. This significant announcement speaks to the deepening commercial ties between the United States and the Philippines.
• Commercial Diplomacy: U.S. companies operating in the ASEAN region generated over $14 billion in commercial deals over the past year, supporting the potential creation of more than 40,000 American jobs in sectors including energy, aerospace, health, technology, and transportation.

Strengthening Security Cooperation in Southeast Asia

• Expansion of Foreign Military Financing: The United States will allocate $100 million in military grant assistance to the Philippines for fiscal year 2026, a $60 million increase over historical annual funding levels, to enhance the Philippines' ability to defend its sovereignty and deter conflict.
• Increasing International Military Education and Training (IMET): The United States is providing $21.45 million to enhance military education and training for ASEAN countries. The United States will launch a new IMET program in Brunei and restart the IMET program in Cambodia.
• Advancing Counterterrorism: The United States plans to provide $19 million this year to support investigations, prosecution, information sharing, and training and equipment for Philippine counterterrorism efforts which advances the security of the American Homeland.
• Strategic AI and Cyber for National Security: The United States is funding a $6.5 million contract providing the Philippines access to the Rhombus AI Concierge platform, which will enable data-driven AI analytics and real-time predictive analysis to inform strategic national security decisions. The United States is also providing $3 million for cyber-related training to the Philippines.
• Safely Demining the Region: The United States is providing over $130 million to continue demining and clearance of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam as part of the United States' commitment to war legacy efforts.

Improving Global Health Security

• U.S.-Philippines Health Strategic Objective Agreement: The U.S. Government and the Government of the Philippines signed a five-year Strategic Objective Agreement. The agreement contains a jointly funded plan for up to $685 million to improve and sustain capacity to detect, treat, and prevent HIV and tuberculosis, and strengthen global health security.

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