The second Pax Silica Summit, hosted by the United States (US) Department of State last June 25-26, gathered global representatives to introduce the new signatories and plans under the initiative. The European Union (EU) and nine other countries signed the Pax Silica declaration, bringing the total number of participants to 24 countries across the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The summit also introduced the new Artificial Intelligence (AI) Opportunity Partnership<\/a>, outlining vague yet similar principles to the Pax Silica declaration on foreign investments and AI. A total of 35 countries signed this partnership: 23 of which are Pax Silica signatories, while 12 are not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From securing technology, energy, and critical minerals to now clinching trade routes and sea lanes, the US is slowly completing the whole picture of the semiconductor supply chain after seven months since the first Pax Silica summit\u2014but it seems the US\u2019s gluttony is far from over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Main Course<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Pax Silica<\/a> is a US-dominated initiative aiming to compete with China\u2019s global semiconductor presence. Securing parts of the supply chain\u2014from design research and development (R&D), mining, manufacturing to end-use integration\u2014is imperative for the Western war hegemon to secure the backbone of technology that powers devices such as communications, AI, electric vehicles, sensors, guidance systems, and war technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Only the Philippines has a unique and concrete contribution to Pax Silica. While Jacob Helberg, US Department of State Undersecretary of Economic Affairs, praised other signatories\u2019 ambiguous promises of natural reserves and technological advancements, the Philippines went ahead. It offered 1,620 hectares<\/a> of land in New Clark City along the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC) at the time of signing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Philippines\u2019 participation in the initiative has raised many too-good-to-be-true prospects for the country: foreign-owned investments would create millions of jobs<\/a> and broader opportunities for AI-native local facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But in the buffet table of global oligarchs and investors, even leftovers for a starving nation will seem heaven-sent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Crumbs for the People<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Critical minerals and mining<\/strong>. The US Department of State remarks<\/a> that it is most interested in the Philippines\u2019 critical minerals, particularly its rich nickel, copper, chromite, and cobalt reserves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Simultaneously, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) also invested US$600 million<\/a> in direct equity and direct loan investments in the Orion Critical Mineral Consortium (CMC) platform in 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Orion CMC, driven by data center growth and critical mineral investments, is currently eyeing<\/a> developments in mining groups across Southeast Asia, including the Philippines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But the US isn\u2019t the only country interested in the Philippines\u2019 natural minerals. OceanaGold is a gold and copper mining company from Pax Silica observer country Canada with a 10.5% share in Philippine gold production in 2024. The firm recently pledged US$1.9 billion<\/a> in investments for continued operations in Nueva Vizcaya until 2037 despite intense rejection<\/a> from communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clearly, Pax Silica will fast-track how politicians and oligarchs use the country\u2019s critical minerals as bargaining chips, trading its indigenous people, farmers, land, and resources as their dispensable capital and eventually leaving behind environmental degradation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Renewable energy (RE)<\/strong>. Large amounts of energy are required to power mining and semiconductor manufacturing. In the recent 2024 Energy Situationer by the Department of Energy (DOE), the country\u2019s total primary energy supply (TPES) increased by 5.2% to a total of 69.0 million tonnes of oil equivalent (MTOE). The share of net imported energy increased to 55%, diminishing the share of indigenous energy to 45%, 1.5% less than the previous year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Philippines<\/a> also remains dependent on fossil fuels, with 65% of electricity generated by coal. The energy sector is deregulated and privatized, and it is not surprising that the Philippines has the most expensive electricity rates in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of developing a self-reliant, clean, and cheap energy sector, the government\u2019s solution to the worsening energy crisis is to attract more foreign investments in RE through Pax Silica. Through the initiative, collaborations such as UAE\u2019s Masdar<\/a>\u2019s US$15 billion RE investments with the DOE and Norway\u2019s Scatec<\/a> with Aboitiz Power may be streamlined and given further incentives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To add more salt to the wound, the Aboitiz empire is set to grow more with BlackRock\u2019s Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP)\u2019s 40% stake in Aboitiz InfraCapital worth US$233 million<\/a> cleared<\/a> by the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) this June. BlackRock is the world\u2019s largest asset management firm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This means that foreign and local energy oligarchs are not only profiting from RE, thanks to the Marcos Jr administration\u2019s liberalization of RE projects to 100% foreign ownership but are also financializing RE development to generate more profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This corporate prioritization means that RE is to be used for Pax Silica-aligned mineral processing and manufacturing hubs, not for the communities needing this crucial public service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Manufacturing<\/strong>. Semiconductor manufacturing is two-pronged, with Wafer Fabrication (\u201cfab\u201d and foundries) at the front-end, and Assembly, Testing, Packaging (ATP) at the back-end of the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the 24 Pax Silica participants, the Netherlands\u2019 Advanced Semiconductor Materials Lithography (ASML) may be the most valuable asset to the US. ASML holds a global monopoly on the equipment needed to manufacture semiconductors. With a stake in advanced lithography systems, the US has a better hold on large semiconductor foundries such as those in Taiwan (TSMC), South Korea (Samsung), and Singapore (UMC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The back-end of semiconductor manufacturing, however, remains bleak. The Philippines<\/a>, in particular, has had over 50 years of experience in ATP for major foreign semiconductor companies like Intel, Onsemi, and Texas Instruments. Electronics are also consistently the country\u2019s top export, making up 54.6%<\/a> of total exports in May 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, decades of countless low-value-added foreign investments did not industrialize the Philippines. It did not provide high-quality tech transfers and sustain holistic worker upskilling; nor did it advance the Philippine tech industry higher in the overall supply chain. Pax Silica\u2014with the goal of making use of the Philippines\u2019 ATP experience\u2014will only add more years to the count.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The back-end of the process has always meant wage depression and labor repression for the Filipino workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Feast for the few<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The proposed core of Pax Silica is how connected and coordinated its promised global supply chain will be. The initiative posits that every country has an invaluable contribution held in the highest regard. But the whole picture of the supply chain shows that it is ultimately not the positive-sum partnership it presents itself to be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The supply chain begins and ends with the US, because Pax Silica is ultimately for <\/em>the US\u2019s geopolitical interests. Under both design and end-use integration, the US war machine is keen on monopolizing intellectual property rights through its clear stress on innovation regulation. Moreover, the US Department of War has already been declined by US AI company Anthropic<\/a> to use its AI models for mass domestic surveillance and fully autonomous weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n From 2014-2024, US investments and financial aid are estimated to have reached over US$12 billion<\/a>. Some notable large investments can be found in the semiconductor industry and renewable energy sector, with US$2 billion from Texas Instruments and US$7.5 billion from NuScale Power pledges, respectively. Majority of US\u2019s infrastructure development investments are for military purposes, with six investments totaling US$144.6 million in 2023 alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pax Silica is a matter of the US\u2019s economic security, interchangeably defined as its national security, wherein the US\u2019s gaining technological dominance over China is the ultimate goal. Meanwhile, the Marcos Jr administration allows the plunder of the country\u2019s resources for fleeting cheap jobs and false promises of industrialization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n