The annual bilateral military exercises in Balikatan (Shoulder-to-Shoulder) directly contribute to the efforts of the Philippine armed forces to eradicate the terrorists abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah and bring their development to areas once tormented by terrorists, including Basilan and Jolo. This is not only combined military training, but also civil and military affairs and humanitarian projects. The International Military Education and Training (IMET) program is the largest in the Pacific and the third largest in the world, and a Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) was signed in November 2002. Similarly, cooperation between law enforcement agencies has reached a new level: the US and Philippine authorities have cooperated to charge numerous terrorists, implement the country extradition treaty and train thousands of Philippine police officers. There is a senior law counselor who assists the Philippine National Police with its transformation program. Sixteen separate lists are listed in Schedule A; but among these, there is a disappearance of communication equipment; Three consist of minute zones for the installation of navigation aids; A small coast guard; A radio station one, an anchor of the navy; A military cemetery and one, a holiday and leisure centre for military personnel. There are only seven lists of actual operational military bases, in the accepted sense of the word. Three of them, in Pampanga, are coherent and provide a real base for the army and air force. This area, close to San Fernando and Angeles, will likely include all army field troops in the Philippines, offering almost total concentration in a limited area. Army headquarters will be located at Fort Stotsenburg and all U.S. Military activities will be in the area, including an air facility, a protective ground combat force and a supply depot. Indeed, this joint resolution amended the Tydings-McDuffie Act on three key points: (1) it provided for the creation of military and air bases after independence, in addition to the naval bases already planned; (2) that it does not limit military or naval bases to existing reserves; and (3) he gave the President of the United States the power to unilaterally create such bases if he wanted to. I will dwell on that third point in this message.
“President Roxas has informed this government that Congress and the Filipino people want us to maintain U.S. bases in the Philippines. This agreement has been concluded accordingly. In this regard, it can be recalled that in the Independence Act of 1933, also known as the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Bill, passed by the U.S. Congress, the provisions relating to military bases that the United States wished to retain after independence were among those that protested the Philippine legislature to reject this legislation. This agreement provides far more points of support than had been envisaged in 1933. This change in attitude is of course due to the last war. After signing the agreement at 8:30 a.m. .m March 1947, the President stated that the Commonwealth Government in Exile had a series of discussions in 1943 with U.S.
government officials on the liberation of the Philippines, the possible evolution of the post-liberation independence date and military relations between the Philippine Republic and the United States after independence. Our government at the time recognized the new global conditions and the whole way the war was shown and expressed its agreement with the extension of military cooperation between the two countries after independence, in order to provide for the construction and maintenance of bases of the army, navy and air force. This agreement was adopted and implemented by a joint resolution of the United States Congress, adopted by the President of the United States on June 29, 1944.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.