The doctrine of 'assertive transparency' has dramatically escalated the South China Sea tensions. Among other things, it has been used to justify the trilateral alignment of the US, Japan and the Philippines. How did it come about?

ON Monday, April 11, US President Biden hosted a trilateral summit in Washington, D.C., at a time of surging tensions in the South China Sea. In the meeting, Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. begin to broaden their trilateral cooperation officially. The summit heralds the maritime exercises of the Philippines, Japan, Australia and the US, and the US-Philippine large-scale military exercises.