AFP chief wants Palawan, Zambales, N. Ecija to host US training facilities

MANILA, Philippines - Armed Forces chief Gen. Emmanuel Bautista wants military sites in Palawan, Zambales and Nueva Ecija to host the American facilities to be built under a new defense deal signed by the Philippines and the United States last month.

Bautista said Oyster Bay in Palawan, Naval Station San Miguel in Zambales and Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija need to be developed to accommodate training activities and military’s assets.

He hopes the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which provides American troops greater access to Philippine bases, will facilitate the development of the sites.

“These are our traditional training areas. We need to develop Fort Magsaysay to be a world class training facility not just for our armed forces but also for our training with our allies,” Bautista told ABS-CBN News in a recent interview.

“This is also true for our (Naval Station) San Miguel in Zambales. Oyster Bay is still underdeveloped but we need to improve Oyster Bay for our armed forces. Perhaps with the EDCA, that can be facilitated,” he added.

The military chief clarified that the sites for EDCA are still being finalized and he was just stating his personal preferences.

Bautista said the development of Oyster Bay is important as it provides access to disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

“It is easier for us to support our patrols in the West Philippines Sea and it allows us to address the issues and threats in the West Philippines Sea,” he said.

Oyster Bay is located beside Ulugan Bay in Puerto Princesa City, where the headquarters of the Naval Forces West is located.

The Oyster Bay has a pier and some support facilities but Bautista admitted that these are “not that good yet.”

“We need to improve the pier. We need to improve living facilities and support facilities. Well, we have allocated funding for that. Maybe not enough if we want to develop it to be a real base for our navy or bilateral exercises,” Bautista said.

The government has allotted P500-million to develop the Ulugan Bay facilities, including P313-million to improve the pier, harbor and support facilities at Oyster Bay.

Naval Station San Miguel, meanwhile, is a former US military facility located in San Antonio, Zambales. It now hosts the Philippine Navy’s Naval Education and Training Command.

The naval station is about 134 nautical miles from the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal, an area within the Philippines’ continental shelf that has been occupied by Chinese ships since 2012.

Officials earlier revealed that Fort Magsaysay, the largest military camp in the country, is being eyed as possible site for the American facilities. The 44,000-hectare camp hosts the Army’s Special Operations Command and the 7th Infantry Division. 

“They (US) have big aircraft, but for example, the air strip in Fort Magsaysay may not be able to accommodate this big aircraft,” Bautista said. 

”They may help us in that respect to develop that airport or air strip. It benefits both of us. It allows us to have more activities, more training activities,” he added.

Previous reports said military facilities would also be constructed in Subic, which hosted a US naval base until it was shut down in 1991.

US and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority officials are said to be in talks to thresh out the details of the project.

EDCA permits the US to build facilities and store defense equipment in mutually agreed upon Philippine bases.

Officials claim that the EDCA, which will last for 10 years, would help upgrade the Philippine military, widely considered as one of the weakest in the region. (with a report from R. Mendoza)