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MANILA: Philippine politicians on both sides of the aisle have slammed President Rodrigo Duterte’s latest tirade against the country’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the US.
Duterte made the comments during a Philippine Air Force event on Friday, demanding that Washington pay Manila if it wants the more than two-decade-old VFA to remain in place.
One senator said the leader’s comments were “embarrassing” and gave the impression that the Philippines was a “nation of extortionists.”
Others warned that the diplomatic relations of the Philippines, together with its sovereignty, should not come with a price tag.
Catholic priest and peace advocate Elizeo Mercado Jr., a senior policy adviser at the Institute for Autonomy and Governance, told Arab News that “whatever the president’s decision on the VFA, it is outright wrong to put a price on it.
“Friendship has no price. To put a price tag on it is not good diplomacy and not good for the relationship with the US. The president might agree or disagree, or allow or disallow the VFA, but it should be based on a matter of principle, not on price,” Mercado told Arab News.
He added that the move was in “bad taste” and “makes us look like we are for sale.”
Mercado said: “If we are friends with the US, we can talk about the VFA. If we are not friends with the US, we can also talk about it respectfully, on the basis of principle.”
Vice President Leni Robredo, in a radio program, also criticized Duterte’s comments.
“It sounded like extortion. It sounded like a criminal saying, ‘if you want this, you have to pay first,’” she said, adding that the demands were “no way to treat a longtime ally.”
Robredo added: “It’s embarrassing. It’s like we are extorting them. For me, when we say we do not want to renew the VFA, then let’s lay down the reasons. Let us show them why it will not be good for us. Money should not be the consideration.”
The vice president said that relations should be based on the mutual benefit of both parties. “It’s not ‘we’re friends because you gave me money,’” she said.
Sen. Panfilo Lacson, who chairs the country’s committee on national defense, said a diplomatic approach would have been more effective in sending a message to the US.
“Why use strong words to send a message to a longtime ally, when a civil, diplomatic and statesmanlike approach can be more effective?” Lacson said in a statement on Sunday.
He shared Mercado and Robredo’s sentiment that the president’s comments were in “bad taste.”
The previous day, Lacson warned that the Philippines needed the VFA — especially given recent Chinese intrusions into Philippine territory, particularly in the West Philippine Sea — as “the last thing” the Philippines should lose is the balance of power that its allies, including the US, “can provide to suit our national interests and territorial integrity.
“It was in that context that I posted a tweet on the matter on Saturday. I decided to take it down after giving it a thought that the president’s intention was to get a fair shake of the agreement, only he could have said it in a more diplomatic way. On crucial issues such as this, there should be no room for misinterpretation or misunderstanding moving forward,” Lacson said.
“The president may have used strong words to send his message across to the US, but there is a more civil and statesmanlike manner to ask for compensation from a longtime ally using the usual diplomatic channels and still getting the same desired results.”
International security analyst Stephen Cutler told Arab News that the VFA addresses “all kinds of activities of US military.”
He said: “The massive aid provided by the US after disasters uses US military goods, equipment and personnel. None of that would likely be available without the VFA. So USAID would still help, but through chartered civilian flights and civilian personnel. US Navy ships might bring supplies, but would stay in international waters, with Philippine boats ferrying foods and goods to shore.”
As for Duterte’s remarks, he said: “For me, I see the president as addressing his constituents, and trying to rally them to his ideas of ‘stand on our own.’
“It looks like the president wants to buy new air and naval assets and equipment for the Philippine military, but the opposition won’t fund that because they think that the US will provide support if needed.
“He may be laying a path for even more defense spending at a time when anti-coronavirus spending is the only thing on people’s minds,” Cutler added.
The VFA provides a legal framework through which US troops can operate on a rotational basis in the Philippines. Experts say that without it, other bilateral defense agreements, including the Mutual Defense Treaty, cannot be implemented.
Duterte notified Washington in February last year that he was canceling the deal amid outrage over a senator and ally being denied a US visa. But he has extended the termination process, which will now be overseen by US President Joe Biden’s administration.
Representatives from both countries have been meeting to iron out differences over the military agreement.