'Philippines given access to US structures'

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines will be given access to structures to be set up by the United States (US) as part of a deal seeking to boost the security cooperation between the two countries, officials said Friday.

Eduardo Malaya, member of the Philippine negotiating panel, noted that the areas to be shared with the US are within the Philippine military’s bases.

“I think at this time, both panels have reached an agreement on languaging (sic) and we would be able to hammer down the specifics as to who would be securing what area,” Malaya said in a press conference in Camp Aguinaldo.

“But as a concept, access is assured, this being within Philippine military bases and also the right of the base commander to have access to specific area will be shared with them has already been agreed in principle by both panels,” he added.

Malaya, however, admitted that the access would be “subject to safety, operational safety and security requirements.”

“We are discussing some operational safety and security requirements with respect to the exercise of access by the base commander but please note this pertains to safety and security,” Malaya said.

The requirement, Malaya stressed, would not cover the exercise of police power by the Philippines over a US personnel suspected of breaking the law.

The access of Philippine authorities to US facilities has been a key issue in the negotiation, which is now in its final stages.

Talks on a proposed deal on enhanced defense cooperation between Manila and Washington hit an impasse late last year due to the failure of both sides to reach a consensus on American facilities to be set up in the country.

The presence of US forces is a controversial issue in the Philippines, with activists claiming that a deal on increased rotational presence would violate the country’s sovereignty.

The Senate voted to close the US bases in the country in 1991 but a visiting forces agreement allowing joint drills between Filipino and American soldiers was ratified eight years later.

Base within a base?

Philippine officials have given assurances that a new deal on enhanced defense cooperation would comply with the constitution and existing laws.

When asked whether the US can reject the representatives to be sent to the Philippines, Malaya said: “No, this is within a Philippine base. There are no extraterritorial features, there is no exclusivity feature. And Philippine law prevails there.”

Defense Undersecretary Pio Batino, chairman of the Philippine panel, said access to US facilities has always been their “primordial concern.”

“It would be safe to say that although we know the fluidity that characterize these negotiations, it’s safe to say that there will be language that will provide that Philippine authorities will have access to areas provided to the US armed forces,” Batino said.

The locations to be provided to the US troops would not be exclusive to them and would be used to obtain mutual benefits for the two militaries, he added.

“It would be a requirement that the presence of US troops would be temporary so with these characteristics we can say that this won’t be a base within a base,” Batino said.

No timetable

There have been speculations that the deal on enhanced defense cooperation will be signed during the visit of US President Barack Obama next month.

Philippine negotiators, however, could not provide a timetable for the completion of the negotiations, which started last August.

“If the negotiations are successfully concluded and that happens before the arrival of President Obama, then we will be happy of course. But at the same time we are aware that these types of negotiations do take time,” said Philippine panel member Lourdes Yparaguirre.

“It is in the interest of both sides, the Philippines as well as the US, that the negotiations proceed at a deliberate phase, ensuring clarity and full understanding of the relevant issues and ensuring and producing an outcome that is desirable and an agreement that is mutually beneficial.”

Philippine draft

The Philippines presented its own version of a draft agreement during the fifth round of talks last January.

Batino admitted that the Philippines had no such draft during the first four rounds of talks.

“Once we had finished all the discussions, all the conceptual discussions, it was decided, that it will be best for us to (place) in one single document all the requirements that we have discussed with the US,” he said.

Malaya revealed that the Philippine draft included a provision requiring a review of the agreement every five years.

“We also included the right of the base commander and environmental protection and some opportunities for Philippines suppliers of services, goods,” he said.

Philippine negotiators believe the agreement does not need to be ratified by the Senate because it is just an implementing document of the Mutual Defense Treaty and the Visiting Forces Agreement.

The seventh round of negotiations on the enhanced defense cooperation deal will be held this month.