US President Barack Obama yesterday stood in front of a hulking Philippine Navy frigate and vowed to bolster security in the seas around the island nation — opening a six-day diplomatic tour in Asia that was likely to be divided between the region’s long-simmering disputes and more immediate concerns about Islamic extremism roiling Europe and the Middle East.
During a visit to the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, a onetime US-owned warship, Obama said that the US would transfer two additional ships to the Philippine Navy — a US Coast Guard cutter and a research vessel.
“We have a treaty obligation, an ironclad commitment to the defense of our ally, the Philippines. You can count on the United States,” Obama said, with US and Philippine troops looking on. “My visit here underscores our shared commitment to the security of the waters of this region and to the freedom of navigation.”
Photo: AP
Obama never mentioned China by name as he stood in front of the Gregorio del Pilar, but the intended recipient of his message was clear.
The announcement was a brief attempt to focus the world’s attention on Obama’s efforts to strengthen alliances in Southeast Asia, a key element of his seven-year campaign to increase US influence in the region.
However, the attacks in Paris and talk of reprisals against the Islamic State group threatened to cloud Obama’s good-news tour to the Philippines and Malaysia this week. While Obama was ready to talk up his freshly signed trade deal and military cooperation in Asia, the rest of the world was looking for leadership on the Islamic State’s relentless reign of violence.
As Obama arrived for a meeting of APEC, the 21-member group readied a statement condemning the Paris attacks — a rare deviation from the group’s chief mission.
The White House was determined this week to show it would keep a steady focus despite the tragedy that consumed European allies. Obama left Washington as scheduled just hours after the night of violence in Paris left 129 people dead and hundreds more injured. He has not changed his plans for the nine-day trip that began Sunday at the G20 summit in Antalya, Turkey.
At back-to-back summits in Manila and Kuala Lumpur, Obama was expected to point to recent evidence of long-sought progress in Asia.
Obama’s warship visit was aimed at calling attention to a defense cooperation agreement cemented last year that gives the US new access to some Philippine military bases.
The compact is part of a broader effort to strengthen US presence — and counter China — in the South China Sea. The US this year will spend US$119 million building up Southeast Asian navies, and Obama will ask for another US$140 million in assistance next year, the White House said.
A humanoid robot that won a half-marathon race for robots in Beijing on Sunday ran faster than the human world record in a show of China’s technological leaps. The winner from Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, completed the 21km race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, said a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race began. That was faster than the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in about 57 minutes in March at the Lisbon road race. The performance by the robot marked a significant step forward
Four contenders are squaring up to succeed Antonio Guterres as secretary-general of the UN, which faces unprecedented global instability, wars and its own crushing budget crisis. Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are each to face grillings by 193 member states and non-governmental organizations for three hours today and tomorrow. It is only the second time the UN has held a public question-and-answer, a format created in 2016 to boost transparency. Ultimately the five permanent members of the UN’s top body, the Security Council, hold the power, wielding vetoes over who leads the
South Korea’s air force yesterday apologized for a 2021 midair collision involving two fighter jets, a day after auditors said the pilots were taking selfies and filming during the flight and held them responsible for the accident. “We sincerely apologize to the public for the concern caused by the accident that occurred in 2021,” an air force spokesman told a news conference, adding that one of the pilots involved had been suspended from flying duties, received severe disciplinary action and has since left the military. The apology followed a report released on Wednesday by the South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection,
An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. Officials said the advisory was not a quake prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives. Prime
RSS