Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is ready to open the country’s “facilities” to US forces under a 1951 mutual defense treaty if Russia’s war against Ukraine turns for the worse and embroils the US in the fighting, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said yesterday.
Duterte made the remarks in a recent meeting in Manila, where he also voiced concern over the global economic impact of the unfolding crisis, Romualdez said.
The Philippines has condemned the invasion and voted yes on a UN General Assembly resolution that demanded an immediate halt to Moscow’s attack and the withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine.
Photo: AP / Malacanang Presidential Photographers Division
Duterte, whose stormy six-year term ends in June, has nurtured closer ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) while often criticizing US security policies in the first years of his presidency.
However, Romualdez said Duterte told him that the Russian invasion was wrong.
“He says if they’re asking for the support of the Philippines, it’s very clear that, of course, if push comes to shove, the Philippines will be ready to be part of the effort, especially if this Ukrainian crisis spills over to the Asian region,” Romualdez said in an online briefing with Manila-based journalists. “Give them the assurance that if ever needed, the Philippines is ready to offer whatever facilities or whatever things that the United States will need being a major — our No. 1 ally.”
Duterte did not specify in his remarks which Philippine facilities US forces would gain access to, but Romualdez said these could include the sprawling Clark and Subic Bay freeports northwest of Manila that used to be among the largest US air and naval bases outside the US mainland until US forces pulled out in the early 1990s.
There was no immediate comment from Duterte or his office.
The 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty commits the US and the Philippines to come to the aid of the other in case of an attack.
US officials have repeatedly assured their Philippine counterparts in recent years that they would honor their treaty obligations if Philippine forces, ships or aircraft come under attack in the disputed South China Sea, including by China.
US national security officials have scheduled a meeting this week at the White House with ASEAN ambassadors to discuss the widening sanctions imposed by the US on Russia, including US President Joe Biden’s ban on Russian oil imports, Romualdez said.
Romualdez also said he learned that Ukraine has appealed to many nations, including the Philippines, “to stop doing business with Russia,” but said he was unaware if the request has been officially conveyed to Manila.
Another topic at the meeting with US officials this week is Biden’s invitation to ASEAN heads of state to take part in a special US summit on March 28.
Duterte might skip the event because it falls on his birthday and during the busy Philippine elections season, Romualdez said.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
UNREST: The authorities in Turkey arrested 13 Turkish journalists in five days, deported a BBC correspondent and on Thursday arrested a reporter from Sweden Waving flags and chanting slogans, many hundreds of thousands of anti-government demonstrators on Saturday rallied in Istanbul, Turkey, in defence of democracy after the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu which sparked Turkey’s worst street unrest in more than a decade. Under a cloudless blue sky, vast crowds gathered in Maltepe on the Asian side of Turkey’s biggest city on the eve of the Eid al-Fitr celebration which started yesterday, marking the end of Ramadan. Ozgur Ozel, chairman of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which organized the rally, said there were 2.2 million people in the crowd, but
RSS