The Philippines and the United States will shortly announce the location of four additional military bases in the Southeast Asian country that American soldiers will be permitted to use, officials said Monday.
The longtime treaty allies decided last month to expand cooperation in “strategic areas” of the country as they seek to oppose China’s increasing power over Taiwan and its construction of bases in the South China Sea.
The 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, known as EDCA, delivered US forces access to five bases in the Philippines. It has been expanded to nine, but the locations of the four additional bases have not been revealed as the state consults with local officials.
It has been widely reported that two of the sites will be in the northern province of Cagayan, less than 400 kilometers (250 miles) from Taiwan, which China sees as part of its territory.
Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba has publicly opposed having EDCA sites in his province for worry of threatening Chinese investment and becoming a target in a battle over Taiwan. But Philippine acting defense chief Carlito Galvez told reporters on Monday the nation had “already decided” on the sites and that Mamba had approved to “abide with the decision”.
The two countries will announce the locations as soon as they can.”
Frank Kendall-US Air Force Secretary at a joint press conference with Galvez and other officials.
Galvez and Kendall were at Basa Air Base, north of the capital Manila, where the United States is funding $24 million in upgrading the 2.8-kilometer runway. Basa is one of the five bases originally included in the EDCA.
The deal permits US troops to revolve through the bases and also hold defense equipment and supplies at them. The agreement was delayed under former president Rodrigo Duterte, who favored China over the country’s former colonial master. But President Ferdinand Marcos has embraced a more US-friendly foreign policy and has aimed to accelerate the performance of the EDCA.
China has been critical of the deal, which its embassy in the Philippines said recently was part of “US efforts to cover and contain China through its military alliance with this country”. But Kendall said it was for the “good of the region”.
The defense treaty with the Philippines is about mutual protection and peace and security in the region in general.”
Kendall said.
