Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is traveling to the Philippines this week for the 13th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, the Department of War announced on Oct. 25, 2026. The ministerial sessions are scheduled for Oct. 28 and 29, and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has said he will hold a bilateral meeting with Hegseth on the sidelines.
The trip takes Hegseth from the Middle East file, where The Boston Report covered his visit to Israel and the Iran strike signals on Oct. 25, to the South China Sea, a region where Washington and Beijing both send delegations to the same table.
What the Department of War announced
The department’s advisory said Hegseth will travel to the Philippines “to reaffirm America’s commitment to peace through strength in the Pacific.” It said he will take part in the ADMM-Plus and “hold bilateral and multilateral meetings to strengthen deterrence, advance key alliances and partnerships, and expand burden-sharing across the region.” The advisory did not list individual meetings, dates of arrival or a press schedule.
Cebu meeting: dates, venue and agenda
The 20th ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting and the 13th ADMM-Plus are being held in Lapu-Lapu City, on Mactan Island in Cebu, according to the Philippine News Agency (PNA). The Philippines holds the ASEAN chair in 2026, and the related ASEAN leaders’ summit is set for Nov. 16 to 18 in Manila, according to The Star.
Reported dates for the wider program vary. PNA gave the full event window as Oct. 26 to 30, with the main ministerial sessions on Oct. 28 and 29. Philippine police have placed 3,670 security and medical personnel on duty for the gathering, according to Philippine media reports summarized by Taiwan Defence.
At an online briefing on Oct. 23, Teodoro said the South China Sea “will also be naturally taken up,” along with working group papers on critical underwater infrastructure, maritime law and security, West Philippine Sea issues and the ASEAN observer teams deployed in Cambodia and Thailand. Asked whether China would send a representative, he said a notice had been sent to Chinese authorities the day before and “I really don’t know.”
Hegseth-Teodoro bilateral and a ‘squad’ meeting
Speaking in Makati City on Oct. 26, Teodoro told reporters: “Definitely with (US Department of War) Secretary Hegseth we will have a bilateral as well as a squad meeting, and I will have bilaterals with almost all.” The “Squad” is the informal grouping of the United States, Japan, Australia and the Philippines.
Teodoro said topics with Hegseth include the “enhancement of defense relations,” to check “if we need to add what we are doing, if we need to accelerate, decelerate, or what have you.” He also raised the possibility of more Status of Visiting Forces Agreements. The Philippines currently has such agreements with France, Canada, Australia, Japan and New Zealand, according to PNA.
What happened at last year’s ADMM-Plus
Hegseth attended the 12th ADMM-Plus in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2025. The Department of War published a joint media statement from his meeting with Malaysia’s defense minister. According to an Asia Society analysis, Hegseth and Teodoro announced “Task Force Philippines” there, a joint initiative aimed at cooperation and interoperability. The U.S. Pacific Fleet said the task force would not introduce new U.S. combat forces, conduct offensive operations or create permanent basing in the Philippines, according to that analysis.
In his 2025 plenary address, Hegseth said “China’s behavior toward its neighbors and the world is a wake-up call” and that the United States “does not seek conflict” but “will continue to stoutly defend its interests,” as quoted by Asia Society. He also met Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun, and the two sides agreed to set up new military-to-military channels, according to the same analysis.
U.S.-Philippines defense ties
Hegseth visited Camp Aguinaldo in Manila in March 2025, where he held a joint press briefing with Teodoro. Under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, the Philippines has granted the U.S. military rotational access to sites including bases in Cagayan province in northern Luzon, according to The Star. The two countries also share a 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, published by the Yale Law School Avalon Project.
The Pentagon’s push on new force structures, including the planned Autonomous Warfare Command, and the Ukraine Starlink dispute covered in our report on Musk’s terms-of-service claim, are separate files that remain open as Hegseth travels.
What to watch
- Whether China sends a delegation to Cebu, and at what level.
- Any Department of War readouts of the Hegseth-Teodoro bilateral and the four-nation “Squad” meeting.
- Whether a joint declaration addresses the South China Sea Code of Conduct, as the 2025 Kuala Lumpur declaration did.
This article will be updated when the Department of War publishes readouts from the Cebu meetings.
Sources
- U.S. Department of War: Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to Visit the Philippines and Participate in the ADMM-Plus (Oct. 25, 2026)
- Philippine News Agency via The Chronicle: Teodoro to hold bilateral meeting with US counterpart this week (Oct. 26, 2026)
- Philippine News Agency via The Chronicle: Key security issues to be tackled in ADMM-Plus meeting in Cebu (Oct. 23, 2026)
- Asia Society Policy Institute: U.S.-China Military Rivalry Punctuates Southeast Asian Defense Dialogue in Malaysia
Additional sources
- U.S. Department of War: Joint Media Statement on United States-Malaysia Bilateral Meeting (2025)
- The Star: Manila envoy signals likely ‘Squad’ talks
- Taiwan Defence: Philippines deploys 3,670 personnel for ASEAN defence ministers in Cebu
- Yale Law School Avalon Project: Mutual Defense Treaty Between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines (1951)
Featured image: Pete Hegseth meets Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro at Camp Aguinaldo, March 28, 2025. Photo: U.S. Department of Defense, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
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