The Philippines said on Friday it hopes to complete a new defense accord with the US ahead of a visit by US President Barack Obama this month, as a territorial dispute with China simmers.
The head Philippine negotiator, Philippine Undersecretary of Defense Pio Lorenzo Batino, said in a statement that the latest round of discussions about an increased US military presence in the country was “very productive.”
“This round brought us much closer to finding full consensus and the draft provisions on key points of an enhanced defense cooperation will be submitted to the president for his review,” Batino said.
Philippine negotiators on Friday said the eighth round of talks on a proposed military agreement had seen both sides “finding consensus on key points of a draft.”
The agreement proposes allowing more US troops, aircraft and ships to pass through the Philippines, as well as storing equipment in this country that could help mobilize US forces faster — particularly in the case of natural disasters.
The accord would provide “critical and timely support to the modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines [and the] achievement of the country’s minimum credible defense posture,” Batino’s statement said.
The deal would not allow the US military to “establish a permanent military presence or base” or bring nuclear weapons into the country, in line with the Philippine constitution.
The proposed agreement could be signed before Obama visits the Philippines this month, a spokesman said.
“We aim to conclude the negotiations before the Obama visit,” Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose said.
Washington has said Obama is to visit the Philippines at the end of this month as part of a four-nation tour of East Asia.
China claims almost all of the strategically important body of water, even up to the coasts of its neighbors.
Last month, Chinese ships blocked Philippine vessels that were bringing supplies to a Philippine military outpost, and in January Chinese ships used water cannon on Philippine fishermen near a disputed shoal.
The Philippines has responded by filing a case with a UN tribunal to challenge China’s territorial claim.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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