New ties, new risks in the South China Sea
http://atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/SEA-01-270314.html
New ties, new risks in the South China Sea
By Richard Javad Heydarian
Mar 27, '14
MANILA - After nearly a year of intense bilateral negotiations, the Philippines and United States have overcome previous stumbling blocks and reached a "consensus" on the contours of a new defense pact. Formal finalization of the deal is expected to coincide with US President Barack Obama's scheduled official visit to the Philippines in late April.
After a series of failed diplomatic overtures towards China, Philippine President Benigno Aquino has now placed strategic hope in revitalized and bolstered military ties with the US, a move aimed in part at counterbalancing China's rising assertiveness over contested territories in the South China Sea.
Alarmed by China's recent reported incursions into Philippine-controlled maritime territories, including this month's blockade of Philippine ships from accessing the Second Thomas Shoal, Aquino recently recalibrated his government's negotiating position to allow for a stronger, more permanent US presence on Philippine soil.
Since 2002, as part of Washington's so-called global "war on terror", approximately 500 American troops from the US's Special Operations Command Pacific have been stationed on a rotational basis on the southern Philippine island of Mindanao.