After China's series of actions to assert its claims over almost the entire South China Sea, the Department of National Defense (DND) is eyeing the revival of military war games between the Philippines and the United States armies.
In a statement released on Sunday, April 11, the DND, through its spokesman Undersecretary Arsenio Andolong, said Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana will discuss the return of the Balikatan Exercises with President Duterte.
The statement was issued after Lorenzana held a telephone conference with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III on Sunday, April 11.
"The two defense chiefs discussed the situation in the West Philippine Sea and recent developments in regional security. Both are looking forward to the conduct of Exercise Balikatan which was cancelled last year," Andolong said in a statement.
The Balikatan Exercises was stopped after Duterte cancelled the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), a move which was backed by staunch Duterte allies in the government. It was done as Duterte was seen as shifting to a foreign policy favorable to China.
The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), signed in 1998 and ratified the following year, permits joint military training between American and Filipino soldiers in the Philippines. It also governs the conduct or behavior of US troops while they are in Philippine soil.
The VFA led to the establishment of the annual Balikatan exercises. Through this, American and Filipino soldiers joint military exercises that enhance their interoperability, strengthen partnerships, and improve disaster response and counterterrorism capabilities.
However, Duterte ordered the termination of VFA on February 12, 2020 following the revocation of the US travel visa of Senator Ronald Dela Rosa, a close ally, due to alleged human rights violation when he was still the chief of the Philippine National Police.
The last iteration of Balikatan was supposed to take place in May 2020 but it had also been cancelled due to the threats posed by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
On June 1, 2020, Duterte ordered the suspension of the VFA termination due to "political and other developments in the region" which “shall start on an even date and shall continue for six months. After that, it can be extended by the Philippine government for another six months, until the tolling of the initial period in Note Verbale No. 20-0463 dated February 11, 2020 shall resume.
Duterte again suspended the termination of the VFA in January 2021.
According to Andolong, Austin reiterated the importance of the VFA as he expressed hope that it would be done again by the two allied countries.
"Secretary Lorenzana committed to discuss the matter with the President as the final approval lies with him," Andolong noted.
The return of Balikatan is being pushed by Austin as China steps up its efforts to establish presence in the South China Sea by swarming reefs and building artificial islands in the West Philippine Sea.
On Saturday, China reportedly sent its first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, in the South China Sea.
This came as a US Navy battle group, the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group, entered the South China Sea last April 4 to conduct routine operations and exercise freedom of navigation operations.