The United States is not attempting to establish permanent military bases in the Philippines, US Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III disclosed on Thursday, Feb. 2.
United States Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III and Department of National Defense Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. hold a press briefing at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City on Feb. 2, 2023.
“I just want to be clear that we are not seeking any permanent basing in the Philippines,” he stressed. “[EDCA] is about providing access to allow us to increase training opportunities with our allies here.” “EDCA is a cooperative agreement that enables rotational activities. It’s a key pillar of our training and opportunities to strengthen our interoperability. It also provides us the ability to respond effectively to humanitarian issues and also disaster relief and other types of crises not just for the Philippines but for the region around,” Austin stressed.
“We discussed both countries’ actions to address destabilizing activities in the waters surrounding the Philippines including the West Philippine Sea. We remain committed to strengthening our mutual capacities to resist armed attack,” he said. Austin’s statement was echoed by Galvez as he noted that the Philippines is committed to “deepen” its bilateral cooperation with the United States to protect the country’s territory.
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