5 US Ships Welcome New Year in Subic
Subic Bay, Philippines – FIVE (5) US Ships docked and welcomed the new year here to the delight of business establishments and residents in this former US Naval Base.
The USS Pecos, USNS Tippecanoe, USNS Cesar Chavez, USNS Impeccable and USNS Bowditch arrived without fun fare nor announcement by the US Embassy in Manila.
“As usual, the US servicemen beefed-up the local tourists, vacationers and because of the season, Christmas shoppers,” local businessman Harold Santiago told Subic Bay News, “restaurants, hotels, barbershops, malls and transport vehicles were bustling with increased volume of customers.”
What is now the Subic Bay Freeport was the largest US Military facility outside the US mainland which shut down in 1992 after the Philippines senate voted not to ratify an extension of US military presence in the country.
The Philippine constitution has since barrred basing rights to any foreign force, including but not limited to US forces.
In 1998, however, the US and the Philippines entered into a bilateral agreement called Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) that allowed US forces to regularly visit and train with their filipino counterparts which, in 2014, was augmented by the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which allows the rotating increased US military presence in various Ph military bases.
But in Olongapo City, Subic Bay Freeport and most of the provinces of Zambales & Bataan, the presence of US ships and US forces mean economic activity and dollars pouring into the local economy, which explains the 80-90% pro US presence sentiment in the area.
If President Duterte makes good his pronouncements of severing ties with the US, businessmen and residents here will be the first to feel and suffer the economic backlash it will bring.
“We were displaced by the eruption of Pinatubo volcano and the US Base pull-out,” Santiago said, “booting out the Americans is like another volcanic eruption and US pull-out. What sin have we done to deserve such a displacement?”
Both supply ships USNS Bowditch and USNS Impeccable were victims of Chinese harassment at the West Philippines Sea, the former in 2001 and the latter in 2009.
The Philippines and China are locked in disputes over territories in the West Philippines Sea, particularly in the Spratlys off Palawan and Panatag (Scarborough) Shoals off Zambales.
President Duterte does not appear bent on pursuing the Philippine’s claims despite a favourable ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in July 12, 2016 in the Philippine’s historic case against China over the West Philippines Sea. -30-
