ASEANEWS HEADLINE-ASIA GEOPOLITICS | MANILA, Philippines: US to build boat maintenance facility in Palawan
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PH agrees to US proposal to build boat maintenance facility in Palawan | ANC
MANILA, Philippines — The United States military will build a boat maintenance facility at the Philippine Navy’s Oyster Bay detachment in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.
The structure will not be a military base, the US embassy stressed yesterday, as it announced that the US Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command had issued an invitation to bid or public solicitation for its design and construction.
The Naval Detachment Oyster Bay has been the launching point of previous rotation and resupply missions of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea.
It is where small civilian boats commissioned by the military to bring food and supplies to troops depart for the grounded BRP Sierra Madre.
The US embassy said the facility to be built “will provide repair and maintenance capabilities for several small Philippine military watercraft and will include two multi-purpose interior rooms suitable for equipment storage or conference use.”
“The boat maintenance facility is not a military base. The project is approved by the government of the Philippines in accordance with all applicable US and Philippine local rules and regulations,” the announcement read.
“Our US Philippine alliance with its roots in the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty remains a cornerstone of peace and security, promoting our common vision for a free, open, and resilient Indo-Pacific,” it added.
The embassy noted that all US military activities in the Philippines “are done in full coordination with our Philippine allies.”
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Asked for confirmation or more details about the project, AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said further inquiries would be better answered by the US side.
“We respectfully defer this matter to our United States counterparts, as it falls within their purview to address,” she told The STAR.
In September last year, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. and AFP chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. inspected key naval facilities in Palawan under the military’s Western Command including the Oster Bay Naval Detachment located in the same province as Balabac Island, a new Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) site which American troops are being given access to along with eight other similar military bases across the country.
Balabac Island is among the four new EDCA sites identified in 2023 along with the Naval Base Camilo Osias in Sta. Ana and Lal-lo Airport in Lal-lo, both in Cagayan, and Camp Melchor dela Cruz in Gamu, Isabela.
The first five are the Basa Air Base in Pampanga, Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Antonio Bautista Air Base in Palawan, Lumbia Airport in Cagayan de Oro, and the Benito Ebuen Air Base in Mactan, Cebu.
Innovative PCG ways
The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vowed to come up with “innovative ways” to fight China’s persistent aggression in the West Philippine Sea, nine years since the landmark 2016 arbitral ruling was handed down.
In an event organized by research firm Stratbase ADR Institute last July 11, PCG Commodore Jay Tarriela declared the agency would sustain its “unwavering commitment” to stay firm against the Chinese in the West Philippine Sea.
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“Despite our limited resources, our dedication to defending what is rightfully ours remains strong,” said the PCG’s spokesman on West Philippine Sea issues in his speech.
He added, “We will continuously seek innovative ways to highlight China’s blatant violations of international law, bullying tactics, and aggressive actions before the international community.”
Tarriela also vowed the PCG would not stay silent amid China’s efforts to intimidate Philippine vessels in the West Philippine Sea.
“We refuse to let the People’s Republic of China’s intimidation tactics succeed through our silence. As staunch advocates of international law, which serves as equalizer among nations, we recognize that the PRC will not be held accountable if we remain silent in the face of such aggression,” he said.
Aside from Tarriela, Foreign Affairs Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro, United States Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Steve Koehler, and the ambassadors of the United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Japan, New Zealand and Vietnam showed their support for the Philippines in upholding the 2016 arbitral award.
The ruling debunked China’s so-called nine dash line claim that the country used to assert its expansive claim over almost the entire South China Sea.
At present, the PCG has a fleet of two 97-meter vessels, an 83-meter offshore patrol vessel, and 11 44-meter patrol boats used alternately for maritime patrols and humanitarian efforts.
As part of the deployment in the West Philippine Sea, the agency carried out its “transparency initiative” that documented China’s hostile behavior toward Philippine vessels, previously shown by sailing close to Philippine vessels that resulted in collisions and blasting water cannons.
The Marcos administration has approved the acquisition of five additional 97-meter ships from Japan and 40 patrol ships from France, which could be delivered in the next two years, as part of a project to modernize the PCG.
Meanwhile, Tarriela reported the two Chinese navy warships that navigated the West Philippine Sea close to Cabra Island in Occidental Mindoro over the weekend have left Philippine territory.
Warning vs Cha-cha
The Kabataan party-list said yesterday that the proposed Charter change will further surrender the country’s sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea to the US and China.
“Let us not use the issue on WPS to deceive the public to support Cha-cha. This is clout chasing at its worst,” Kabataan Rep. Renee Co said in a statement.
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“With all due respect, let’s make it make sense. We don’t want the foreigner to control our seas, but once Cha-cha is passed, we will give way to 100 percent ownership on key industries, utilities, lands, schools, media and other parts of the economy. Economic Cha-cha backstabs our national sovereignty,” Co added.
Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin, former chairman of the House committee on constitutional amendments, earlier filed House Resolution of both houses of Congress No. 1 focusing on amendments to the national territory and restrictive economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.
Garbin zeroes in on Articles I, XII, XIV and XVI of the Constitution focusing solely on clarifying the definition of national territory and easing economic restrictions, without touching on political term limits or governance structures.
Philippines, Indonesian special forces hold joint training
Flipino and Indonesian army soldiers are now engaged in joint training exercises that will see combined events focusing mainly on territorial defense.
Army spokesman Col. Louie Dema-ala said the Indonesian Army Special Forces delegation underwent a camp orientation at the Special Forces Regiment (Airborne) in Fort Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija on Tuesday.
The initial event was carried out ahead of the opening of the 17th iteration of Training Activity (TA) DOLPHINE that will see both forces training together in critical areas of territorial defense.
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Dema-ala said TA DOLPHINE XVII-2025 focuses on four critical special operations capabilities: Urban Warfare, Special Reconnaissance and Direct Action, Riverine Operations for inter-island infiltration and Airborne Operations including military free fall techniques.
According to him, 25 Philippine Army and 25 Indonesian Army personnel will participate for the main training activities scheduled from July 16 to 17.
Additionally, six senior Indonesian Army officers will participate in the Senior Officers’ Visit Program from July 22 to 25. – Ghio Ong, Pia Lee-Brago, Jose Rodel Clapano
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