Manila, April 8, 2022—Members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the U.S. military gathered today to celebrate the successful completion of Balikatan 22, the 37th iteration of the annual bilateral exercise. Over the last two weeks, nearly 9,000 exercise participants from the AFP and U.S. military trained shoulder-to-shoulder from the northern coast of Luzon to Palawan, focusing…
Continuous upgrades are being carried out at Subic Bay International Airport to develop its potentials as a gateway; The airport is eyed as an alternate hub to decongest NAIA; a logistics hub; and for aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul operation; Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority is exploring public-private partnership development of Subic Bay International Airport. Upgrades at Subic Bay International Airport…
Philippine Secretary of Defense Delfin N. Lorenzana visited the United States of America to meet with US senior officials, in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Philippines-US Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). Following their bilateral meeting in Manila last 30-July-2021, Secretary Lorenzana met with his counterpart, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III on 10-September-2021 in Washington DC where…
A Chinese embassy official once told a Philippine diplomat, “Why don’t you get closer to a friendly neighbour rather than a distant cousin?” Of course he was referring to the relationship between the Philippines and China vis a vis the former and the United States. On another occasion a US official, on the same topic similarly quipped, “Yes, you cannot…
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Early this year on February 11, the President announced the termination of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) in response to the suspension by the U.S. of visas of certain Philippine officials in the Department of Justice and an incumbent senator. The suspension would have taken effect 180 days later. On June 11, in a reversal of position, the government, citing…
(Click the cover to download the PDF version of the magazine.)
Notably preceded and followed by major military movements, I wonder what would be the impact on RP’s claim on certan islands and sea areas in the SCS. Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914), graduate of the US Naval Naval Academy, wrote of the interdependence of military might and seaborne commerce, “whoever controls the sea lanes controls the islands; who controls islands controls…
In his last article in the Maritime Review magazine (March-April 2020 issue) Commodore Carlos L Agustin AFP (Ret), Founding President of The Maritime League, related some interesting points that led to the administrative control of two large U.S. bases in the Philippines in the late 1970s. The designation of Filipino base commanders, with U.S. facilities inside, allowed the Philippine flag…
Philippine President Duterte has recently forwarded notice to the United States (U.S.) his decision to terminate the current Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) that has been in effect since 1999. This long-standing agreement is scheduled to renew or expire in August 2020. The concerns expressed by many -for or against this action- address many opinions of which I will try to…