PRESIDENT Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has given the Department of National Defense (DND) the green light to negotiate a Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with France, which will pave the way for the conduct of military exercises between the two countries.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. announced this yesterday during the 49th founding anniversary of the AFP Western Command in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan.
In his address, Teodoro narrated how the government is cooperating and forging alliances with other countries, citing the recent visit of Japanese Defense Minister Nakatani Gen who he said pledged continuing support for the interoperability of both countries.
On Friday, Teodoro is due to meet with visiting US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at Camp Aguinaldo.
“In a few days, my counterpart, the honorable Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Defense of the United States of America, will be paying a visit to the president and myself when we will discuss ways to enhance our bilateral and trilateral squad partnership,” said Teodoro.
He added that the defense department has finalized discussions on a visiting forces agreement with New Zealand and Canada.
The DND announced the conclusion of the Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA) with New Zealand and Canada last February 20 and March 7, respectively.
Teodoro said the agreement with New Zealand will be signed next month.
“We also have received from his excellency, the President, the authority to negotiate a Visiting Forces Agreement with France, and other countries are coming and joining the bandwagon,” said Teodoro.
He said such agreements are important, noting the “small cabal of men” from the Chinese Communist Party.
“As much as they (Chinese Communist Party) would like to claim, no ASEAN country accepts the legitimacy of that 10-dash line (claim of China), because that is the biggest fiction and lie that can be sold to any right-thinking person,” said Teodoro.
The Philippines signed the Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States in 1998, the SOVFA with Australia in 2007, and the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) with Japan in July 2024.
The Senate ratified the RAA with Japan last December. However, the agreement will have to be approved by the Japanese government’s National Diet to render it valid and binding.
