US will not bring in nukes–defense official

From the Business Mirror (Mar 21): US will not bring in nukes–defense official

WHILE the United States will be bringing into the country advanced fighter jets, ships and other state-of-the-art military equipment under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca), it will not bring in nuclear weapons because of the Constitution’s nuclear-free provision.

Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino, a member of the Philippine panel that negotiated Edca with the US, earlier said that all of the country’s “pertinent laws” and the Charter’s strict provision against nuclear weapons will be strictly followed in the deployment and hosting of American assets.

“While US military assets and equipment will be prepositioned in the country through the selected bases, provisions of the Constitution will be followed and this includes against the hosting of nuclear weapons,” he said.

During the Sixth Strategic Bilateral Dialogue held last week in Washington, D.C., the US and the Philippines agreed on five locations where Manila would temporarily host American troops and their assets and equipment under Edca.

These bases and their locations are Antonio Bautista Air Base in Palawan; Basa Air Base in Pampanga; Fort Magsaysay in Laur, Nueva Ecija; Lumbia Air Base in Cagayan de Oro; and Benito Ebuen Air Base in Mactan, Cebu.

Officials of both countries are now discussing which type of assets and military equipment should be prepositioned in the select bases, along with the type of facilities that would be constructed, although they have admitted earlier that these equipment would include surveillance planes needed to monitor activities in the West Philippine Sea.

Batino said the buildings and other permanent structures that will be built for the use of the visiting American forces “will be automatically owned by the government and, as such, will greatly hasten the development of Philippine military facilities.”

Meanwhile, the  US will deploy and use for the first time high-mobility artillery rocket system (Himars) in next month’s Balikatan military exercises, along with 55 various aircraft and at least five warships.

Capt. Celeste Frank Sayson, Balikatan public affairs officer, said the Himars will be involved in the live-fire exercises at Crow Valley in Capas, Tarlac, and later on will be brought to Palawan.

“Part of the live-fire exercises in Crow Valley is the Himars, which is for air protection, it is also an anti-ship warfare, ground warfare asset. Later on it will be brought to Palawan, although it will not be doing some live-fire exercises in Palawan,” he said.

Sayson said that, aside from the Himars, the US will be bringing in aircraft that includes V-22 Ospreys and five warships.

At least 4,904 US soldiers and Marines, and 3,773 Filipino troops will be involved in the two weeks of actual military exercises.

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/us-will-not-bring-in-nukes-defense-official/