US assures Philippines: You’ve got a friend

The United States has pledged to be an ally of the Philippines “long into the future.”

“That is what it means to be an American. And that is what is means to be a friend,” said Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas Jr. at the US Embassy in Manila, Friday, during rites marking both US Independence Day and Filipino-American Friendship Day on July 4.

Thomas noted that together, Washington and Manila “harbor the same hope for the future of the Philippines that President Aquino shares with his nation. We marvel at the indomitable will and irrepressible spirit of the Filipino people.”

According to Thomas, Americans are “powered by our relationships, by our friendship with great nations like the Philippines, with whom we share historic ties and strong bonds of friendship and family.”

He asserted that Americans are “driven by our commitment to liberty and our knowledge that our friends are entitled to our protection and our loyalty when they are in peril. We are powered by our devotion to peace and our drive to find solutions, not divisions.”

“This is what it means to be American. And this is what it means to be a friend to the Philippines,” he said.

In his remarks, Thomas also welcomed Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario, who had just returned from Washington where he met with, among others, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Thomas called Del Rosario’s presence a “symbol of the strength of our two nations’ alliance, and a tribute to our friendship and to Philippine-American Friendship Day.”

‘Honor our commitment’

“I know that I speak for Secretary Clinton, Secretary Gates and Director of National Intelligence (James) Clapper in thanking you for your trip. While you were in the US, they each took the opportunity to reaffirm the deep bonds between our two nations and our commitment to honoring our mutual obligations (under the 1951 PH-US Mutual Defense Treaty) and I reiterate their statements today,” said Thomas.

Two weeks ago, Thomas affirmed for the nth time the strong security ties between Manila and Washington.

“As (the US Agency for International Development) and the Peace Corps commemorate their 50th anniversary in the Philippines, I am reminded of our long and shared history of working together,” he had said at the launch of the National Renewable Energy Program at a Makati City hotel.

Strategic partners

Thomas emphasized then that “the Philippines and the US are longstanding treaty allies.”

“We are strategic partners. We will continue to consult each other closely on the South China Sea, Spratly Islands and other issues,” he had said.

In a June 3 profile on the Philippines, the US Department of State pointed out that the strong security relationship between Manila and Washington “rests on the PH-US Mutual Defense Treaty.”

The report—prepared by the state department’s Bureau of East Asia and Pacific Affairs—is posted on the website of the US Embassy in Manila.

The bureau, headed by Assistant Secretary Kurt Campbell, handles international affairs with 31 countries and geographic entities, including the Philippines.

Signed on Aug. 13, 1951, in Washington, D.C., the Mutual Defense Treaty provides that Manila can count on Washington’s support if the Philippines is attacked by outside forces.

The treaty “has been a longstanding, vital aspect of Philippine defense policy and posture,” said Foreign Assistant Secretary J. Eduardo Malaya.

“It is the sole defensive framework entered into by the Philippines. It has served both countries well since the 1950s and has continuing relevance,” he added. Malaya is also the next Philippine ambassador to Malaysia.

Constructive relations

In the same report, the state department cited the Philippine government for its “efforts to reduce tensions among rival claimants to the territories and waters of the resource-rich South China Sea.”

The agency also said that “in its foreign policy, the Philippines cultivates constructive relations with its Asian neighbors with whom it is linked through membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the Asean Regional Forum and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

According to the state department, “US-Philippine relations are based on a shared history and commitment to democratic principles, as well as on economic ties.”

“The historical and cultural links between the Philippines and the US remain strong. The Philippines modeled its governmental institutions on those of the US and continues to share a commitment to democracy and human rights. At the most fundamental level of bilateral relations, human links continue to form a strong bridge between the two countries. There are an estimated four million Americans of Philippine ancestry in the US, and more than 300,000 American citizens in the Philippines,” it said.

The agency said “the post-US bases era has seen US-Philippine relations improved and broadened with a prominent focus on economic and commercial ties while maintaining the importance of the security dimension.”

“US investment continues to play an important role in the Philippine economy, while a strong security relationship rests on the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT). In February 1998, US and Philippine negotiators concluded the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), paving the way for increased military cooperation under the MDT,” it said.