The U.S. and the Philippines will jointly establish a 4,000-acre AI-native industrial hub to strengthen supply chain security in the Indo-Pacific region.

U.S.-Philippines to Establish 4,000-Acre Industrial Hub

The U.S. Department of State announced that the Philippines has joined Washington-led Pax Silica initiative, with the U.S. and Philippines planning to establish a 4,000-acre industrial center to strengthen supply chain security.

In a statement released on Thursday, April 16, the Department said the center will be located within the Luzon Economic Corridor in the Philippines and designated by the Philippine government as an economic security zone—marking the first project of its kind. The statement described this center as a new AI-native investment acceleration model developed under the Pax Silica initiative. "AI-native" refers to the concept of embedding artificial intelligence (AI) into the foundational architecture from the very beginning of a project.

The Department’s statement further noted: "This economic security zone is part of a broader strategy aimed at significantly enhancing the production capacity of critical inputs within the U.S. supply chain... Situated within the Luzon Economic Corridor, the region can fully leverage the Philippines’ geographic centrality in the Indo-Pacific, its young and technically skilled workforce, and its increasingly deepening alliance with the United States."

The Luzon Economic Corridor is a major joint economic initiative launched in 2024 by the United States, the Philippines, and Japan, covering the capital city of Manila and other neighboring provinces with active industrial and manufacturing sectors.

The Pax Silica initiative is a significant strategic move driven by President Donald Trump to advance AI and supply chain security, aiming to foster a new consensus on economic security among allies and trusted partners.

Last December, the United States signed the Pax Silica Declaration with five countries—Australia, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Israel—and subsequently eight additional nations have joined, including the latest addition, the Philippines.

The U.S. Department of State’s webpage on Pax Silica also notes Taiwan as a “non-signatory participant.” In January this year, senior U.S. and Taiwanese economic officials held the U.S.-Taiwan Economic Prosperity Partnership Dialogue (EPPD), during which both sides issued a joint statement expressing support for the Pax Silica Declaration (translated into Chinese as “Shixi Shengshi Declaration” in Taiwan).

Source: VOA

Original: toutiao.com/article/1862756997347524/

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