US considering seeking access to more Philippine bases, admiral says

Following a meeting with the commander of the Philippine armed forces on Thursday, the head of the US Indo-Pacific Command said that the US military might be given access to new sites in the Philippines as part of a cooperative defence agreement between the two nations. After earlier this year accusing Washington of “stoking the fire” when the Philippines increased the number of bases the US. military could use to nine, China is sure to react adversely. Four other locations were authorised, three of which faced Taiwan to the north and one of which was close to the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, the scene of a recent spat between Manila and Beijing over a disputed atoll. US Admiral John Aquilino claimed that he and the head of the Philippine military, Lieutenant General Romeo Brawner, had discussed and “made recommendations to our senior leaders” regarding increasing the number of locations US personnel are permitted to access under the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). China is worried about the strengthening of US defence ties with the Philippines following a period of decline. The United States claims it wants to strengthen an alliance that is already powerful and strengthen Philippine defences. According to Brawner, the objectives of EDCA were training exercises and humanitarian and disaster response, important tenets of a long-standing partnership between the two nations. Regional security challenges were unrelated to EDCA, he added. The allies were working to clinch an agreement to increase intelligence sharing, according to Aquilino, who was in Manila for an annual summit on bilateral defence cooperation. The conference takes place as the Western Command of the Philippines expressed worries on Thursday over a “resurgence” of Chinese fishing boats “swarming” in waters near the Spratly islands, inside the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Philippines. China holds “indisputable sovereignty” over the Spratlys, which it refers to as Nansha Islands, according to the Chinese embassy in Manila. (With agency inputs)