A US Navy warship is in Cebu for routine ship replenishment and refueling, the Naval Forces Central (Navforcen) confirmed yesterday.
The USS Chafee (DDG-90) arrived in Cebu last Saturday and is currently docked near the seas of Talisay City.
Navforcen spokesman Joseph Ison told Cebu Daily News that the warship will be in Cebu until February 1.
Aside from replenishment and refueling, Ison said the ship will also conduct regular maintenance work.
The ship’s crew will have its “crew liberty” or free time to spend in the province.
The USS Chafee is a 2th Flight IIA Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer which has an approximate crew of 320.
Another guided missile destroyer, USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG-108) arrived in Manila Bay.
The militant group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) assailed yesterday the port calls in Manila and Cebu of two US warships.
They said the ships were “already part of the heightened US power projection in Asia, as stated in the new US defense strategy.”
Bayan secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said “even without a formal basing agreement, the US uses access agreements and training exercises so that at any time the US has forces in our country.”
The presence of the two ships came amid a second bilateral meeting between Manila and Washington
aimed at strengthening cooperation in maritime security, defense and law enforcement last Jan. 27.
In a joint statement, the two allies reaffirmed their commitment to an “invigorated and expanded alliance capable of addressing 21st century challenges.”
“We reinforced the significance of our Mutual Defense Treaty as the basis for the alliance and the treaty’s continued relevance to the peace, security and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific,” they noted.
The allies saw the dialogue as “an opportunity to consult and exchange views on a broad range of bilateral, regional and global issues, reflecting our common values and interests.”
The meeting was co-chaired by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Erlinda Basilio, Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino (for the Philippines) and Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and Acting Defense Assistant Secretary Peter Lavoy (for the US).
The two sides announced that high-level consultations would continue this March at a joint ministerial meeting between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.
They highlighted “upcoming opportunities for further high-level engagements,” including official visits to Manila in February by US Assistant Secretary of State for Political and Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro and Deputy US Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis. Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus with an Inquirer report