Philippines president says joint bases with US won't be used for combat

By Anadolu Staff

ANKARA (AA) – Philippines President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has rejected the notion that the US will use his country's military bases for combat purposes.

In a policy speech delivered at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington DC on Thursday, he said the original concept behind this cooperation is climate change and increasing instances of disasters in the Philippines.

"When these things happen – these places will be used to provide quicker relief, rescue and … rehabilitating and reconstructing the damage that will be caused by these disasters," he explained.

Marcos said that he told the Chinese foreign minister a couple of weeks ago that these bases will not be used to attack any country.

Last month, some local and international organizations objected to US bases in the Cagayan province of the Philippines, fearing that the recent agreement by Manila to provide four more bases to Washington in the valley region will exacerbate the already dire situation of human rights and land grabbing.

Last month, Manila identified four more military bases for joint use with Washington under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).

Two of the four additional military facilities are located in the Taiwan-facing province of Cagayan – the Cagayan North International Airport in Lal-lo and the Naval Base Camilo Osias in Santa Ana town.

Earlier, the country's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo also said that they "won't allow" the US to stockpile weapons at the joint military bases for use in operations in Taiwan.

*Writing by Islamuddin Sajid