Towards a comprehensive security alliance: Evolving dynamics in the United States’ humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to the Philippines
| Date | 01 December 2021 |
| Author | Julius Cesar I. Trajano |
| DOI | 10.1177/20578911211058151 |
| Published date | 01 December 2021 |
| Subject Matter | Special issue articles |
Towards a comprehensive
security alliance: Evolving
dynamics in the United States’
humanitarian assistance and
disaster relief to the Philippines
Julius Cesar I. Trajano
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Abstract
The Philippines’humanitarian norms and frameworks have evolved from focusing on humanitarian
assistance and disaster relief to more pro-active disaster preparedness, enhancing community resi-
lience and empowered participation of local and grassroots actors. The US-Philippines security alli-
ance has evolved in line with these developments and needs to be understood more holistically
and not be limited to providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief through sending foreign
military assets in times of disasters. This article argues that the non-traditional aspect of the US-
Philippines bilateral alliance is not intended to underplay the role of the US military, but highlights
the importance of the private sector, humanitarian NGOs, and the US Agency for International
Development (USAID) in deepening and broadening the security alliance.
Keywords
US-Philippines security alliance, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, COVID-19, disaster
preparedness, disaster risk reduction, community resilience
Introduction
The Philippines is the 12th most populous country in the world and is a formal treaty ally of the
United States. The Philippine government has anchored its strategic agenda on the alliance since
its independence in 1946. The election of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte as the 16th president
Corresponding author:
Julius Cesar I. Trajano, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Block S4, Level B3,
50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798.
Email: isjtrajano@ntu.edu.sg
Research article
Asian Journal of Comparative Politics
2021, Vol. 6(4) 360–374
© The Author(s) 2021
Article reuse guidelines:
sagepub.com/journals-permissions
DOI: 10.1177/20578911211058151
journals.sagepub.com/home/acp
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