Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr yesterday said the US would gain expanded access to military sites in northern Philippines close to Taiwan, as well as in Palawan province near South China Sea, paving the way for greater US presence in key locations as tensions with Beijing linger.
Marcos said at a televised briefing that the four additional sites under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) are “scattered around the Philippines” and would be identified once formalized with the US.
The new sites are meant to “defend” the main Luzon island’s eastern coast, as well as some areas in the south, the president said.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Local politicians who initially opposed the sites have “come around to support” the plan to expand US access after talks with the national government, he added.
Governor Manuel Mamba of Cagayan Province, where US forces might be allowed to stay with their weapons in up to two Philippine military areas, said Marcos has the prerogative to make the decision.
However, he added that he remained opposed to allowing the Americans to base in Cagayan, which lies across a sea border from southern China and Taiwan, because that could turn his province into a key target of the Chinese military if an armed conflict involving the US military breaks out over Taiwan.
“It is the president’s call, not mine,” Mamba said. “But I maintain my stand against any foreign forces stationed in my province. Still, I am against EDCA sites in my province.”
In Beijing, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Wang Wenbin (汪文斌) said that regional countries “should stay vigilant and should not be used by the US side.”
“The US, out of its zero sum mentality, has built up its military capacity, which jeopardizes the regional peace and stability,” he told a regular news briefing.
The US last month secured access to four more Philippine military sites amid continued tensions with Beijing over Taiwan and the South China Sea.
China has criticized the plan, with its embassy in Manila describing it as part of US’ attempt to “encircle and contain” Beijing.
Marcos has been bolstering his nation’s longstanding defense alliance with the US that was strained under his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte. The US and the Philippines are planning joint patrols in the disputed sea, and are scheduled to hold bigger military drills next month. Their top defense officials and diplomats are also set to meet in Washington in the middle of next month.
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