Philippines consents to giving the US more access to military installations

The move comes amid worries over China’s aggression over Taiwan and in the contentious South China Sea.

According to a joint statement from the defence departments of the two nations, the Philippines and the United States have agreed to broaden their defence agreement, giving US soldiers access to four more military bases in the Southeast Asian country.

The deal was announced by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin while he was in Manila for negotiations with newly elected Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

With the agreement to designate four new Agreed Locations in strategic parts of the nation and the substantial completion of the projects in the existing five Agreed Locations, the Philippines and the United States are proud to announce their plans to accelerate the full implementation of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), according to a joint statement. Both the US Department of Defense and the Department of National Defense of the Philippines released it online.

The EDCA is a component of the US and Philippines’ long-standing security partnership and permits US troops to cycle through five Philippine facilities, including those close to contested maritime areas.

Additionally, it permits the US military to keep defence supplies and equipment on certain facilities.

The extension will “accelerate upgrading of our joint military capabilities,” according to the statement, and make the partnership between the two nations “stronger and more resilient.”

The announcement said the additional locations will “enable more quick support for humanitarian and climate-related calamities in the Philippines,” without going into further detail. At the existing five EDCA locations, the US had allotted more than $82 million for infrastructural improvements.

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The development comes as China asserts itself more vehemently in its claims to Taiwan, a self-governing island, as well as in the South China Sea, where it asserts its contested nine-dash line claims to practically the whole waterway. The sea, a crucial conduit for international trade, is also subject to conflicting claims from Taiwan, the Philippines, and other Southeast Asian countries.

Longtime allies, the Philippines and the US, experienced tension under Rodrigo Duterte, Marcos Jr.’s predecessor, who favoured China and threatened to break off diplomatic relations with Washington and remove US troops.

But the new administration has improved relations, as seen by US Vice President Kamala Harris’s visit in November.

As China’s marine militia has maintained an almost permanent presence in Manila’s exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, the Philippines has frequently found itself on the front lines of Beijing’s aggressive tactics.

Scarborough Shoal was taken over by China in 2012 from the Philippines after a protracted confrontation that started when Manila spotted Chinese fishing vessels near the rocky outcrops.

When the Philippines criticised China’s “continued illegal presence and actions” close to its islands in the South China Sea in 2021, tensions increased once more.

Beijing has disregarded a 2016 judgement by an international court that said the Philippines’ claim to the South China Sea was unfounded.

China has also asserted that democratic Taiwan is a part of its territory and hasn’t ruled out using force to further its goals. Beijing conducted significant war drills all around the island the year before after Nancy Pelosi, the then-Speaker of the US House, visited the island.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES AND AL JAZEERA