A MEETING between senior security officials from the Philippines and the United States this month will determine the fate of joint military exercises between the two countries, after President Rodrigo Duterte said he wanted US troops out of the country in two years.
National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said Tuesday the Mutual Defense Board, which includes the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff and the commander of the Pacific Area Command of the US forces, will convene this month.
Esperon said AFP chief of staff Gen. Ricardo Visaya was supposed to meet with his US counterpart on Oct. 24, but the meeting was called off.
Sources told Manila Standard that senior defense officials are now looking for ways to carry out the President’s declaration that he would scrap defense pacts with Washington, the country’s longtime strategic and political ally.
During a visit to Japan, Duterte said he wanted American troops out of the Philippines in two years.
“I want them out and if I have to revise or abrogate… existing agreements, this will be the last war games between the United States and the Philippines military,” he said.
He blamed the Americans for treating the Philippines “like a dog on a leash,” threatening to cut off US assistance because of alleged human rights violations by his government.
In the same interview, Esperon said the Philippines did not and need not ask China’s permission to access Panatag Shoal, after both countries reached a “friendly” understanding that allows Filipinos to fish around a disputed shoal seized by Beijing in 2012.
“We still claim it to be ours, therefore we do not need to get their permission,” Esperon said of the shoal.
Chinese Coast Guard vessels still patrol the waters of Scarborough Shoal but are not stopping Filipinos from fishing there.
Esperon maintained that the Philippines has rights over the area due to the country’s exclusive economic zone.
He added that there was no timetable for resolving the country’s territorial dispute with China, but Filipino fishermen would be able to continue fishing there.
A lawmaker on Tuesday, meanwhile, said there should be parity in travel conditions between the Philippines and the United States.
“There are two ways we can achieve parity. Either we obligate Americans traveling to Manila to first secure a Philippine visa, or the US removes the requirement for Filipinos to get a hold of a US visa before they can travel to America,” said Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel.
Pimentel said requiring visitors from the US to obtain a Philippine visa could easily generate $125 million, or P6 billion, in incremental revenue for Manila every year.
“This is assuming we ask each visiting American to pay a $160 visa application fee—the same amount the US Embassy in Manila asks from every Filipino seeking a US visa,” Pimentel said.
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez earlier supported President Duterte’s call for “reciprocity” in travel rights between the Philippines and the US.
Pimentel said parity could mean additional good-paying jobs for college-educated Filipinos trying to enter the Philippine foreign service.
“We could use some of the P6-billion annual income to employ a large number of young Filipinos as vice consuls, and deploy them to Philippine consular offices in the US, so they can process the Philippine visa applications of American citizens,” he said.
At present, Filipinos traveling to America, regardless of purpose, have to apply for a US visa, pay a $160 to $265 non-refundable application fee, and show up for a personal interview with a US vice consul, who may or may not issue a visa.
In contrast, Americans traveling to Manila enjoy visa-free entry into the Philippines for stays less than 30 days.
“There is nothing anti-American about seeking parity in travel stipulations. This is all about equality in treatment. Our people-to-people, business-to-business as well as government-to-government relations with the US remain sound,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel said requiring visitors from the US to apply for a Philippine visa would also help weed out criminal offenders attempting to enter Manila.
He noted that many Americans who are fugitives from justice in their homeland, including child sex offenders, have found it convenient to seek refuge in the Philippines, owing to their ability to freely move into Manila.
“These fugitives easily blend into our communities because of our cultural affinity with America,” he said.
The Tourism Department says Americans comprise the second-largest group of foreigners visiting the Philippines every year, next only to South Koreans.
It said a total of 779,217 Americans visited the Philippines in 2015, up 7.81 percent from the 722,750 that visited the country in 2014.
From January to August this year, a total of 584,149 Americans visited the Philippines, up 9.96 percent from the 531,217 that visited the country in the same eight-month period in 2015, said the department.
At present, under the Visa Waiver Program of the US, citizens of 38 countries are already allowed to travel to America for tourism, business, or while in transit for up to 90 days, without having to obtain a US visa.
These 38 countries are: Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brunei, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.