August 30, 1951: the mutual defense treaty was signed by the US and the Philippines

On August 30, 1951, representatives of the Republic of the Philippines and the United States of America convened in Washington, D.C., to sign the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). As the cornerstone of Philippine–American security relations, the MDT formalized a bilateral commitment to mutual protection against external armed attack in the Pacific theater, establishing what remains one of the longest-standing mutual defense pacts in modern history.