Following U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on July 21 in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Department of State announced at least PHP3 billion (USD60 million) in foreign assistance funding to support energy, maritime, and economic growth programs in the Philippines.
This is the U.S. government’s first announcement of new foreign assistance for any country since the Trump administration began its review and realignment of foreign assistance in January.
As part of this at least PHP3-billion initiative, Secretary Rubio also announced that the U.S. Department of State intends to work with the U.S. Congress to allocate PHP825 million (USD15 million) to catalyze private sector development in the Luzon Economic Corridor. If approved, this funding will support investments in the areas of transport, logistics, energy, and semiconductors that will help create jobs and drive economic growth in the country.
President Marcos’ meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth this week in Washington, D.C., reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to the US-PH Alliance and advanced closer economic ties between the two nations.Â
