Beijing has repeatedly accused the Philippines of being in a pawn in U.S. efforts to contain China's rise and touted bilateral dialogue with its neighbor as the only solution to their territorial dispute.

Government officials say adversaries’ U.S. farmland ownership can imperil national security, while China has dismissed the concerns.

The Trump administration announced Tuesday that it is launching the National Farm Security Action Plan, an aggressive, multiagency effort to protect the United States’s farmland. At its core, the seven-point plan blocks Chinese nationals from buying U.