MANILA, Philippines -- The Philippines will seek to reaffirm its defense ties with the United States when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits the former American colony this week, an official said Sunday.

President Gloria Arroyo and her defense officials were expected to express their "strong support" for the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) when Clinton arrives in Manila on November 12, deputy presidential spokesman Gary Olivar told reporters.

Ratified as a treaty by the Philippines in 1999, the VFA outlines the rules governing the conduct of US troops participating in joint military exercises here.

It allows for the presence of US troops on the southern island of Mindanao where they are helping train Philippine forces against Al Qaeda-linked militants.

"Obviously, the VFA will be a very big topic because that is very important to the Americans," Olivar said. "We would welcome Clinton as the representative of our longest and most ardent supporter, the United States."

Ties between the allies are on the mend after Philippine legislators threatened to review the treaty amid public uproar over a controversial rape case involving a US Marine.

Lance Corporal Daniel Smith was convicted of raping a Filipina in November 2005. He was given a 40-year sentence in December 2006 but was discreetly transferred to a facility inside the US embassy compound.

Public uproar that followed saw near-daily street protests demanding that Smith be held in a local jail. Smith won an appeal in April after the woman recanted her story in a bizarre twist of events.

Nationalist legislators, under pressure due to the controversy, however said they would push for a review of the treaty.

Clinton's visit comes five months after Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited Manila and vowed continued support for Philippine troops in the fight against Islamic militants.

Small numbers of US forces have been rotating to Mindanao since 2003, providing intelligence and training to Philippine troops that have led to the capture or deaths of key leaders of the Abu Sayyaf militant group.

The Abu Sayyaf is blamed for the country's worst terrorist attacks, including a series of bombings and kidnappings.