The Philippines gives the US access to 4 more bases with an eye on China

The US and Philippine governments announced today that they have reached an agreement that will give the US military access to four more military bases in the Southeast Asian country, as the two allies confront the rise of China’s military power.

Washington and Manila have agreed to expand an existing agreement to include four additional bases “in areas of strategic importance,” the parties said in a joint defense ministry press release.

The “Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement” (EDCA) was originally concluded in 2014.

The US allocated more than $82 million to improve infrastructure at five bases where its armed forces already had access, according to the joint statement.

The agreement guarantees the access of the US armed forces to military bases in the Philippines, provides for joint training, the transfer of equipment and the construction of infrastructure such as landing strips, fuel and material storage facilities. However, the American military presence is not permanent.

The deal was announced on the day US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited the country, holding talks with his counterpart Carlito Galvez after being received by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Washington has sought to gain new options in the Philippines as part of plans to counter any move by China against Taiwan.

Although the joint statement did not specify exactly where the four bases are located, Manila had recently announced that Washington wanted access to northern Luzon — the Philippine territory closest to Taiwan — and the island of Palawan, across from the disputed Spratly Islands, in South China Sea.

RES-EMP

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