Philippines-US defence arrangements to stay intact, ambassador to Washington says

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Philippines-US defence arrangements to stay intact, ambassador to Washington says

MANILA (Reuters) – Existing defence agreements between security allies the Philippines and the United States will remain intact under U.S. President Donald Trump, Manila’s ambassador to the United States said on Monday.

For his part, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is ready to travel when Trump has time for a meeting and that could be in the northern spring, Jose Manuel Romualdez told reporters on the sidelines of a forum with foreign media in Manila.

Asked about U.S. security support for the Philippines, including military financing, patrols in the South China Sea and Philippine defence facilities currently used by U.S. forces under their alliance, Romualdez said: “All of that will remain”.

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The United States and former colony the Philippines are staunch defence allies, with U.S. troops rotating in and out of the Southeast Asian country regularly and dozens of joint exercises held each year.

The United States has also deployed to the Philippines a Typhon multipurpose missile system for training purposes, angering China, which has repeatedly said the move poses a threat to regional stability.

The Philippines was seeking to import liquefied natural gas from the United States as part of a “give and take” on trade, Romualdez said.

His remarks come as some countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Thailand, scramble to reduce trade surpluses with the United States following Trump’s order to his government to complete a review of all his country’s trade relationships by April 1.

“Trump’s idea of what the United States wants to do is helping other countries become a real partner,” said Romualdez, who is a cousin of the Philippine president and was posted in Washington under the previous Manila administration.

(Reporting by Karen Lema; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by John Mair)

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