Hegseth proposes a US-ASEAN defence cooperation framework in Cebu, calling the US approach “strong, quiet and clear”

U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has proposed a new defence cooperation framework between the United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), speaking to regional defence ministers in Cebu, in the Philippines, on 28 October 2026. In remarks summarised by the Department of War as an agenda of “practical collaboration and regional stability”, he said Washington wants to work with the region on concrete steps rather than on points of disagreement.

Hegseth described the American approach as “strong, quiet and clear”. In the wording reported by the German news agency dpa, he said it should be “strong enough to deter coercion and aggression, quiet enough to avoid needless escalation or public theatrics”. He also said that “peace through strength” was the aim.

A framework for the next several years

The proposed US-ASEAN framework for defence cooperation would guide ties over what Hegseth called the “critically important” next several years, and is timed to the 50th anniversary of formal US-ASEAN relations in 2027, according to the Manila Times and dpa. He gave no details of its content. Reports said the United States is ready to start work when Singapore takes over the chair next year, and that details are expected to be discussed then.

Hegseth named maritime domain awareness, closer cooperation among navies and stronger interoperability as areas for practical work, citing joint training and planning, according to Baird Maritime and the Manila Times. He said the two sides “are not going to agree on everything” and need not do so. He also credited ASEAN with helping to sustain the ceasefire on the Cambodia-Thailand border, dpa reported.

Manila welcomes the engagement

Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. welcomed Washington’s continued involvement. “We value the United States’ sustained engagement with the defense establishments of ASEAN,” he said, according to dpa. The Philippines, which currently chairs ASEAN, has been in repeated confrontations with China over disputed areas of the South China Sea; Manila said in October that Chinese military and coast guard presence in contested areas had nearly doubled in September, the Manila Times reported.

Baird Maritime reported that China was represented at the meeting by its defence attaché. On the sidelines Hegseth also met Japan’s Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi; the Manila Times said the two discussed “effective denial defence” along the First Island Chain and agreed to coordinate closely on munitions production.

Background

Earlier Geopolitiki reporting covers the tension that frames the meeting, including Philippines: Marcos to summon Chinese ambassador over “if we wanted to use force, we would win easily” – Beijing warns on the South China Sea, and the allied patrols described in Japan, the Philippines and the U.S. Coast Guard hold the 14th Maritime Cooperative Activity of 2026 in the Philippine EEZ.

Hegseth was due to join an expanded session on 29 October with ASEAN’s members and partner countries, according to the same reports.