Philippines, Canada sign Visiting Forces Agreement
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines and Canada have signed a Visiting Forces Agreement that will allow both countries' troops to enter, train and operate on each other's soil.
Signed on Sunday, November 2, the pact makes Canada the fifth country to have signed a troop agreement with the Philippines, after the United States, Australia, Japan and New Zealand — countries that regularly assail Chinese vessels' aggressive actions in the South China Sea.
The VFA was signed by Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro Jr. and Canadian Defense Minister David McGuinty, who is also in Manila to hold bilateral defense talks.
The newly signed VFA with Canada is the third such agreement to be concluded under the Marcos administration. This comes after Manila and Tokyo's Reciprocal Access Agreement — a pact similar to a VFA — entered into force in September, and a VFA between the Philippines and New Zealand was signed in April. The latter has yet to come into effect.
Negotiations for the VFA wrapped up in March, with the final draft exchanged by August. This means discussions spanned just under a year before the official signing took place today.
Before it can take effect, the VFA has to first be ratified by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and then approved by the Senate.
Consistent ally. Canada has repeatedly voiced support for the 2016 arbitration ruling that invalidated Beijing’s sweeping claims in the South China Sea. It has also recently stepped up its deployment of naval vessels to maritime exercises with the Philippines and other allies in the West Philippine Sea — the part of the South China Sea that falls within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone.
The key pact signed Sunday is expected to increase Canada's participation in joint sails and exercises with the Philippines and other allies in the region.
Like others before it, the VFA between the Philippines and Canada is being touted as a deterrent to China's increasingly hostile behavior in the South China Sea, where its vessels accused of deliberately harassing and ramming Filipino boats.
"Underpinning this SOVFA is the foundation in which it is built: preserving the international order and the rules-based order, respecting the sovereignty and dignity of not only states but also their people as human beings," Teodoro said.
A unique VFA? All VFAs differ in terms of their "specializations" and the "distinct experiences" of the armed forces of the countries involved, Teodoro explained.
"We have much to learn and converge with Canada distinct from Australia and other countries we have. But we will converge with them in upholding the rules-based international order," Teodoro said during the press conference following the signing of the VFA.
Today's VFA signing is a "big day" for two countries that are "natural allies," the Canadian defense minister said.
"Mr. Secretary [Teodoro] and I discussed moments ago, that the result of [our countries'] partnership expansion will be moving forward on training fronts, exchanges from our military colleges, information sharing, and understanding cybersecurity," McGuinty said.
"And of course, for maritime domain awareness. We hope to be present in the military exercises like Balikatan... There's so much positive that comes from this agreement today. It builds on those 75 years of partnership and trust and loyalty to each other," McGuinty added.
Canada participated as an observer in the last Balikatan exercises in April — the annual military exercises between the Philippines and the US.
Defying China's anger. Beijing, which claims nearly the entire South China Sea, has reacted sharply to Manila’s growing military cooperation with its allies. China has repeatedly accused the Philippines of “stirring up trouble” through joint patrols with the United States and its partners and has warned against “drawing in external forces” to the maritime dispute.
The Philippines under Marcos has sought to diversify its defense ties, courting countries that support its assertion of rights in the West Philippine Sea to try to stem China’s increasingly assertive behavior.
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