Voice of America
22 Mar 2023, 22:36 GMT+10
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. says the locations of four new military bases that will house a rotating crew of Americans will soon be revealed.
Marcos told reporters in Manila Wednesday that some of the new sites will be in the northern and southern Philippines and western Palawan province.
Philippines President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. delivers a speech on the 126th founding anniversary of the Philippines army at Fort Bonifacio, in Taguig, Philippines, March 22, 2023.
The president also said sites will boost the country's ability to defend its eastern coast, including the coastline of its largest island, Luzon, which is the closest Philippine island to Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing claims is part of China.
The expansion is part of the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which includes five existing sites.
The expansion of the agreement comes as the two longtime allies seek to counter China's increasing assertiveness toward Taiwan and Beijing's actions in the South China Sea.
Beijing has accused Washington of endangering "regional peace and stability" with its increasing military presence in the Philippines.
The new bases are also opposed by some local Philippine officials, who fear the new EDCA sites will put them at the center of a potential armed conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan.
Marcos says he has spoken with local officials about the importance of the new bases and "why it will actually be good for their provinces."
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters.
Get a daily dose of Malaysia Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Malaysia Sun.
More InformationKATHMANDU, Nepal - For the past three days, agitated students and guardians have been protesting against the school administration at ...
LAHORE, Pakistan - On Thursday, anti-corruption officials arrested Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) President Parvez Elahi near his Lahore residence. Anti-corruption staff ...
YANGON, Myanmar - Opium cultivation in military-ruled Myanmar increased 33% last year, reversing a six-year downward trend, according to a ...
NEW DELHI, India - Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal met with Indian counterpart Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House in ...
SAGAING, Myanmar - According to a local resistance group leader in Sagaing Region's Ayadaw Township, a woman was captured and ...
DHAKA, Bangladesh - The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has filed a case against 13 members of Grameen Telecom's board of directors, ...
MIAMI, Florida: Carnival Cruise Lines has said a cruise ship, the Carnival Sunshine, which sailed through rough seas off the ...
BEIJING, China: On his return to China after a three year absence, which is his company's largest production hub, Tesla ...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks surged on Friday on the debt ceiling resolution and a strong jobs report.Nonfarm ...
SANTA CLARA, California: As investors piled more capital into Nvidia, the chipmaker that has become one of the biggest winners ...
PARIS, France: France has celebrated the groundbreaking for the first of four battery manufacturing gigafactories, which European and Asian companies ...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland saw a 20.0 percent increase in people arriving from overseas in April 2023, compared to April 2022, ...