US-Phl defense deal 'significant, flexible' but without specifics

MANILA, Philippines — The Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement has been called the most important deal of its kind between the United States and the Philippines in decades, but it has no specific details, a White House official said Sunday.

Evan Medeiros, National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs, said in briefing in Kuala Lumpur that the agreement signed by Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg on Monday is "just a framework" that allows enhanced rotational presence of American troops in the country.

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"The scope, the duration, and the timing of this rotational presence is something that we will work out with the Philippines as part of a consultation process under our longstanding 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty Framework with the Philippines," Medeiros said.

"I can't be more specific, because the agreement itself is just a framework. It creates a legal and policy infrastructure," he added.

Medeiros explained that details will unfold over time as the two countries determine needs and missions to work together on.

Continuous dialogue will also specify the nature of joint exercises and training between the two armed forces, he said.

Ben Rhodes, US President Obama's deputy national security advisor for strategic communication, said the deal is "flexible" as it provides the presence of American forces and their access to Philippine bases without permanence.

"I think it's a flexible agreement that will allow us to position assets as necessary to provide that training and to do that type of joint effort with the Philippines," Rhodes said.

He also admitted that the arrangement is unusual rather than traditional, as US has maintained bases in other countries but will only have limited access in the Philippines.

"These types of agreements give us that flexibility without necessarily having a base that would get at sovereignty issues for the Philippines and also, is clearly a more resource-intensive endeavor over the long term for us," Rhodes said.

He also explained that rotational rather than permanent troops will address current "threats and challenges" such as in disaster response and counter-piracy
in a manner that is "nimble" enough for the Philippines.

Rhodes also denied that the agreement was made to address the Philippines' contest with China over an area of the South China Sea.

Gazmin, meanwhile, had said that the text of the agreement was finalized over the weekend.

A copy of the framework deal has also not yet been publicly released.

The Philippines has a long-standing Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States signed in 1951 obliging the parties to come to each other's aid if one was attacked by an external party.