A Malacañang spokesperson on Tuesday reminded administration lawmakers that President Benigno Aquino III wants the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the Philippines and the United States continued.
This was after Akbayan party-list Rep. Walden Bello and Senator Miriam Defensor Santiage, who are both aligned with the majority coalitions in Congress, filed a joint resolution seeking to terminate the VFA.
"The President has already stated that the Philippines needs the existence of the VFA which forms an integral part of our national defense strategy," Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said in a press statement.
Coloma added that the VFA is necessary for the Philippines to address "challenges" including potential military conflicts and territorial disputes.
Still, Coloma indicated that the "procedural" VFA review being conducted by the Department of Justice (DOJ) will continue, with the aim of addressing gaps in the interpretation of the current agreement.
Some lawmakers have called for the renegotiation or the complete termination of the VFA, signed by the Philippines with the US in 1998, following the killing of Filipina transgender Jeffrey "Jennifer" Laude.
The VFA provides for enhanced defense cooperation between the US and the Philippines through the resumption of bilateral military exercises between the two parties. It was ratified by the Philippine Senate in 1999.
The agreement also states that a US soldier participating in military exercises who committs a crime on Philippine soil will be under the jurisdiction of the Philippines, but will be kept under the custody of the US.
Pemberton
The VFA provides for enhanced defense cooperation between the US and the Philippines through the resumption of bilateral military exercises between the two parties. It was ratified by the Philippine Senate in 1999.
The agreement also states that a US soldier participating in military exercises who committs a crime on Philippine soil will be under the jurisdiction of the Philippines, but will be kept under the custody of the US.
Pemberton
US Marine Private First Class Joseph Scott Pemberton, a participant in bilateral military exercises, is currently detained at the Philippine military headquarters while facing a murder complaint in connection with Laude's slay.
Aquino himself earlier said that he finds no reason to abrogate the VFA after Laude's killing.
Last week, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said her department is reviewing the VFA provision on the custody of US servicemen implicated in crimes in the Philippines.
But Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario said that changes to the VFA are unlikely despite the DOJ review, since the US is not inclined to amend the agreement.
Early on in Aquino's presidency, the agreement was reviewed by the Presidential Commission on the VFA, headed by Executive Secretary Paquito "Jojo" Ochoa Jr.
Malacañang, however, admitted earlier this month that the Palace review of the VFA did not produce any concrete results.
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