Phl, US hold informal talks on troop presence

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines and the United States have resorted to informal talks to thresh out issues on the increased rotational presence of American troops in the country before formal negotiations resume. 

Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino, head of the Philippine negotiating panel, said the informal consultations would serve as preparations for the formal talks. 

“The informal consultations are regular because we need to prepare and maximize the effectiveness of the formal rounds,” Batino told reporters the other day. 

“We have these regular informal consultations so we can properly delve on the issues so that when the formal rounds resume, both sides are ready,” he added.

Officials are still finalizing the schedule for the fifth round of talks. Batino told The STAR in a separate interview that they are hopeful that the formal talks would resume this month.

Among those to be discussed are the wording of the proposed agreement and the access of Filipino forces to the temporary structures to be constructed by the US.

“Both sides are working on a mutually beneficial agreement,” Batino said.

Last November, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said the talks on the increased rotational presence hit an impasse as the two panels failed to reach a consensus on temporary US facilities to be set up in the country.

Gazmin said the US submitted proposals that they did not agree with.

The Philippine and US negotiators have conducted four rounds of negotiations since August last year.

The Philippines and the US have agreed to adopt the policy on increased rotational presence amid efforts by China to shore up its presence in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

An agreement on the increased rotational presence was meant to enable the Philippines to achieve a “minimum credible defense.” 

The presence of US soldiers is a highly controversial issue in as activists argue that the policy would trample on the country’s sovereignty.