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PHILIPPINES-US-MILITARY
Philippines’ Duterte threatens to end US military pact
MANILA, Jan 24, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte
has threatened to end a pact key to annual war games with American troops if
the US does not restore the travel visa of an official who oversaw his drug
war.
It is the latest in a long line of Duterte’s threats to shrink or sever
ties with historical ally Washington, which have periodically followed
criticism of his deadly narcotics crackdown.
Duterte spoke after Ronald Dela Rosa, the former national police chief
who is now a senator, said the US had cancelled his visa but did not tell him
why.
Dela Rosa was the first enforcer of Duterte’s internationally condemned
campaign, in which police say they have killed just over 5,500 alleged
dealers and users.
Human rights advocates say the true toll is four times higher, and could
amount to crimes against humanity.
The US State Department and the embassy in Manila have not responded to
requests for comment about Dela Rosa’s visa.
Duterte went on the attack in a speech late Thursday.
“Now, they won’t let Bato go to America”, he said, using Dela Rosa’s
nickname.
“If you do not make a correction there, one, I will terminate the bases
— Visiting Forces Agreement,” Duterte added. “I’m giving… the American
government one month from now.”
The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) outlines the rules governing conduct
of US troops participating in joint military exercises in the Philippines.
The pact gave legal cover for the resumption of large-scale war games
between the two allies after the US military closed its Philippine bases in
the 1990s amid rising anti-US sentiment.
Duterte also threatened in 2016 to cancel the agreement, but has
generally attacked ties with the US, including an announced “separation” from
its former colonial master.
Until now the president has not made good on those threats, some of
which came after then US president Barack Obama was critical of Duterte’s
crackdown in 2016.
Relations between Washington and Manila under President Donald Trump,
who has voiced support for Duterte, are on a stronger footing.
However, recent criticism from US lawmakers has introduced new tensions.
The Philippines in December barred US senators Richard Durbin and
Patrick Leahy, who were behind a measure to prevent officials involved in the
incarceration of Senator Leila de Lima from entering the US.
De Lima, one of the highest-profile critics of Duterte’s narcotics
crackdown, has been held since February 2017 over a drug charge that she
claims was fabricated to silence her.
BSS/AFP/BZC/1309HRS