MANILA, Philippines — Philippine and US officials on Monday broke ground for the repairs and updates on the Basa Airbase Runway, one of the approved projects under Manila and Washington’s Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).
The rehabilitation of the 2,800-meter runway will cost USD 25 million (P1.373 billion), while improvements for the airbase are pegged USD 2.8 million (P153.776 million) and creating the wing operations center will total USD 185,000 (P10.113 million).
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“The runway rehabilitation, which is expected to be completed in September 2023, would make Basa Airbase ideal for the efficient conduct of joint task force exercises and as a natural hub for [Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (Hadr)] operations, especially that we are a disaster-prone country,” Department of National Defense Officer-in-Charge Carlito Galvez Jr. said Monday.
The 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, known as EDCA, gave US forces access to five bases in the Philippines.
Basa is among the five bases originally included in the EDCA, which allows US troops access to facilities in the Philippines. These are used to store some of their defense equipment as well as supplies for humanitarian relief efforts.
There are five are ongoing EDCA projects and five more will be implemented soon. So far, only a third of the 15 approved EDCA projects are completed that includes the Hadr Warehouse, C2 Fusion Center, and Fuel Range Tanks.
The DND said the US, as of March, has financed USD 83.06 million (around P4.56 billion) or 23% of the 21 bilateral projects approved.
Specific EDCA sites to be announced 'soon'
Meanwhile, the Philippines and the United States will soon announce the location of four additional military bases in the Southeast Asian country that American soldiers will be allowed to use, officials said Monday.
The longtime treaty allies agreed last month to expand cooperation in "strategic areas" of the country as they seek to counter China's growing assertiveness over Taiwan and its building of bases in the South China Sea.
EDCA bases have since been expanded to nine, but the locations of the four additional bases have not been revealed as the government consults with local officials.
It has been widely reported that two of the sites will be in the northern province of Cagayan, less than 400 kilometres (250 miles) from self-ruled Taiwan, which China sees as part of its territory.
Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba has publicly opposed having EDCA sites in his province for fear of jeopardising Chinese investment and becoming a target in a conflict over Taiwan.
But Galvez told reporters Monday the government had "already decided" on the sites and that Mamba had agreed to "abide with the decision".
"The two countries will announce as soon as they can (the locations)," said US Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall at a joint press conference with Galvez and other officials. – with reports from Agence France-Presse