Lorenzana meets with US counterpart, reaffirms alliance

From Malaya Business Insight (Apr 2, 2019): Lorenzana meets with US counterpart, reaffirms alliance

DEFENSE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and his United States counterpart, Patrick Shanahan, have agreed to step up interoperability between the two armed forces during a meeting in Washington on Monday.

Pentagon spokesman Charles Summers Jr. said the two defense chiefs met “to reaffirm the enduring alliance between the United States and the Philippines and to discuss bilateral issues in the relationship.

“The two leaders discussed a broad range of defense issues and mutual steps to strengthen the alliance,” said Summers.

The US and the Philippines forged a Mutual Defense Treaty in 1951.

“They agreed on the need to increase interoperability between our respective militaries, through exercises, training, and US support for the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization plans,” said Summers.

The US has been conducting exercises with Filipino forces over the past decades to improve interoperability in addressing external and internal security threats and humanitarian assistance disaster relief.

“Secretary Shanahan and Secretary Lorenzana affirmed their common commitment to fighting terrorism in Southeast Asia,” added Summers.

Summers said Shanahan thanked Lorenzana “for his continued support to the alliance, and for his role in advancing our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

In a statement issued prior to his meeting with Shanahan, Lorenzana said the Philippine and US defense relations “will continue to develop” to meet security challenges that the two countries face.

“To keep the momentum, we need to continue assessing the arrangements we have to ensure that, to enable us to attain our mutual interest. My department will continue to work closely with your side in this regard,” said Lorenzana.

Lorenzana noted the conduct of this year’s Balikatan exercise which commenced on Monday, adding the two-week exercise is meant to bolster interoperability between Filipino and American forces.

“As such I encourage our planners to come up with ways to ensure that the Baliktan exercise addresses the training needs of both armed forces. Furthermore, allow me to reaffirm the agreement between both sides to ensure that all our activities are of high value and great impact as well as mutually beneficial,” he added.

Lorenzana urged officials from both sides to continue dialogue with each other, through the established mechanisms such as the Mutual Defense Board and Security Engagement Board.

Lorenzana also expressed gratitude to the US for its continued support in the campaign against terrorism. He said he hopes the counter-terrorism cooperation to be sustained “through real-time information sharing, intelligence exchange and training.”

https://www.malaya.com.ph/business-news/news/lorenzana-meets-us-counterpart-reaffirms-alliance