The funds come after the Philippine president told the Australian parliament he would “not give” a “square inch” in the South China Sea.
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong announced A$64 million ($41.8 million) in funding for maritime security on the first day of a special summit with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Melbourne.
“Countries in our region depend on the oceans, seas and rivers for their livelihoods and trade, including free and open sea routes in the South China Sea,” Wong said in his speech at a forum on maritime cooperation on Monday morning. .
Wong did not specify which countries the funding would go to, but “welcomed the efforts” of Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines to “delimit their maritime borders.”
Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam all claim parts of the South China Sea, which China claims almost entirely.
“What's happening in the South China Sea, in the Taiwan Strait, in the Mekong subregion, across the Indo-Pacific, affects us all,” Wong said.
The special summit hosted in Melbourne marks 50 years since Australia became a “dialogue partner” of ASEAN, whose members are Southeast Asian countries, and comes as its members held their first joint military exercises last year.
The ruling center-left Labor Party has long sought to forge closer ties with the region, recognizing Australia's proximity to Southeast Asia.
But Australia's relationship with its regional neighbors and its interests in the South China Sea are also seen through the lens of Australia's close ties with the United States and its membership in the Australia-UK-China security pact. United States known as AUKUS.
In his speech, Wong quoted Indonesian President Joko Widodo as saying: “We also have a responsibility to reduce tension, melt ice, create space for dialogue and bridge differences” in the region.
Indonesia, along with Malaysia, is among Australia's allies in the region that have raised concerns that Canberra's investment of tens of billions of dollars in nuclear submarines is potentially contributing to a nuclear arms race in the southeast. Asia and throughout Asia Pacific.
Philippines “will not give up a square centimeter”
In a speech to Australia's parliament last week, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr sounded resolute about his countries' position in the South China Sea, amid growing tension with Beijing over their competing claims.
“I will not allow any attempt by any foreign power to seize even a square centimeter of our sovereign territory,” Marcos said.
The Philippines has reported multiple incidents with China in the South China Sea, accusing its coast guard of dangerous maneuvers and lodging diplomatic protests with Beijing over its actions.
“The challenges we face may be formidable, but equally formidable is our determination. We will not give in,” she stated.
But while some Australian representatives applauded Marcos' comments, at least one member of the Australian parliament, Senator Janet Rice, publicly questioned his legacy and was expelled for holding a sign that read: “Stop human rights abuses.”
Marcos Jr is the son of former hardline Filipino leader Ferdinand Marcos, who was overthrown in a popular uprising in 1986 and fled into exile.
Last week, on the streets outside parliament, activists staged protests over Australia's apparent lack of scrutiny of its allies' human rights records, amid ongoing protests over Australia's support for Israel's attack on the Gaza Strip. More protests are planned around this week's ASEAN summit.
Wong's speech also included a nod to Australian funding for climate change resilience through the Mekong-Australia partnership, as many Australians and neighboring Pacific countries question increasing militarization at a time of climate crisis.
