Filipino officials lobbying for US-Philippine mutual defense treaty reset that lowers the threshold for US military intervention Philippine troops watch as a missile hits a target during a live-fire joint US-Philippines exercise. Photo: Ezra Acayan / Getty Images / YouTube Screengrab (Written by Richard Davad Heydarian . Published here in Asia Times , republished with permission.) MANILA – Will the Sabina Shoal be the trigger point for US intervention in the escalating China-Philippine clashes