PHILIPPINE and AMERICAN officials yesterday started a $24-million project (about P1.3 billion) to upgrade the runway of a major Philippine Air Force base in Pampanga under the 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
Defense officer-in-charge Senior Undersecretary Carlito Galvez said the project at the Basa Air Base will enhance the military capability in responding to various threats, including those violating the country’s sovereignty.
Galvez, US Ambassador MaryKay Carlson, and US Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall led the project inauguration.
The base is one of the five EDCA sites agreed on during the administration of President Benigno Aquino III. The four others are Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, Lumbia Air Base in Cagayan de Oro City, Antonio Bautista Air Base in Palawan, and Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu.
EDCA allows the United States to pursue various activities in the agreed sites, including training, transit, support, and related activities; refueling of aircraft; bunkering of vessels; temporary maintenance of vehicles, vessels, and aircraft; temporary accommodation of personnel; communications; prepositioning of equipment, supplies, and materiel; and deployment of forces and materiel.
The agreement also permits the US to preposition and store defense equipment, supplies and materiel, including but not limited to, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief equipment, supplies and materiel.
The five sites are on top of the four additional sites that were approved last month by Philippine and US officials. Authorities have yet to announce the four sites although Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba has opposed the possible inclusion of his province.
Last month, the US and Philippine defense department announced that US has earmarked $82 million (about P4.4 billion) toward infrastructure investments at the five original EDCA sites.
The rehabilitation of the 2,800-meter runway of Basa Air Base, home to the PAF’s 5th Strike Wing, is one of the EDCA projects funded under the $82-million allocation.
“After almost eight years of delays and legal challenges, the EDCA implementation is now in full swing,” said Galvez in his address during the inauguration of the project which he said is due to be completed in September this year.
Galvez said the project will make Basa Air Base “ideal for the efficient conduct of joint task force exercises and as a natural hub for HADR (humanitarian assistance and disaster response) operations, especially that we are a disaster-prone country,” said Galvez.
Galvez also noted that EDCA will boost not only the Philippine military’s capability but also the defense department’s “various efforts to level up the country’s defense capabilities, that is, both the civil and military defense aspects of our country.”
“These include the capability to respond to natural disasters and calamities, conduct of humanitarian assistance operations, and defense against any attempt to violate our sovereignty and territorial integrity,” said Galvez.
15 PROJECTS
Galvez said 15 projects have been approved to be pursued at the five original EDCA sites. Five of these projects have been completed, five are ongoing, and five are “up for implementation soon”, he said.
Galvez said the DND and the AFP are looking forward to the timely completion of all the EDCA projects noting that these will “boost its (AFP) capability to ensure the country’s defense.”
“Most importantly, the facilities would contribute to the national effort in securing our country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, particularly in our maritime domain awareness campaign,” said Galvez.
PAF vice commander Maj. Gen. Ramon Guiang said the command will use the facility “not only to help us modernize our capabilities, particularly on territorial defense, but also to increase our interoperability with the US to effectively respond to our shared security challenges especially in the region.”
Carlson said the project “marks the latest project to strengthen the US-Philippines alliance.”
Carlson said EDCA provides training exercises between the two countries, including the Balikatan exercise. Some 17,600 American and Filipino troops are due to hold the largest Balikatan exercise next month.
“Our team at the US Embassy, the State Department and the Department of Defense work together every single day with our Philippine allies to ensure that EDCA projects help modernize the Philippine armed forces,” said Carlson.
Meanwhile, Galvez said Mamba has agreed to conform with President Marcos Jr’s decision on the possible inclusion of Cagayan as one of the four new EDCA sites.
Mamba had earlier said that US is a nuclear power, thus Americans will “always be a magnet for nuclear power attack or nuclear armed attack.” He said allowing US to put up facilities in Cagayan is an “invitation to nuclear attack in our area.”
In an interview yesterday, Galvez said: “We have already to talked to Gov. Mamba. He even visited my office… and he said that for as long as the national government has decided, he will abide with the decision of the President.”
“We have already decided and I told him we already decided so he will conform with the decision,” said Galvez.
Galvez said all the mayors in Cagayan have “signified their intention to support EDCA.”
“They love to have EDCA sites in their areas,” he added.
Sought for a comment, Mamba said: “It is the President’s call but I maintain my stand against any foreign forces stationed in my province. (I am) still against EDCA sites in my province.”
