From the Philppine News Agency (Mar 24): 7th round of PHL-US EDC talks opens at Camp Aguinaldo
The seventh round of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation (EDC) Agreement between thePhilippines and the United States formally started Monday morning with the two countries' panel members meeting at the Department of National Defense (DND) main building in Camp Aguinaldo , Quezon City
"We welcome Ambassador Eric John and General Joaquin Malade to the warm weather ofManila Washington , D.C.
"As we begin what is now the 7th round of negotiations, this may be a good time to recollect why we are meeting here today. We recall that under the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), our countries are bound to separately and jointly, by self help and mutual aid, maintain and develop our individual and collective defense capabilities," he added.
Batino also emphasized that over the past 60 years, this partnership has evolved.
"And we are challenged to continue to find ways to ensure our alliance remains responsive to the changing regional security environment," he said.
"And due to this development, thePhilippines
"Thus, we are mindful of the need to make adjustments in the implementation of the MDT to ensure that our constitutional requirements are fully observed," he stressed.
"We also understand the changes that have taken place in theUS , as you seek to re-balance to Asia within the constraints of a new fiscal environment," Batino said.
The Philippine panel head also stressed that the agreement reaffirms the two nations commitment to the enduring alliance.
"As we seek to build a minimum credible defense posture, we are leveraging our long history of partnership to meet both traditional and emerging challenges, and extend our areas of cooperation to new grounds, like humanitarian assistance and disaster relief," Batino stressed.
The DND official stated that the Philippine side expects that "this agreement will not just bolster our collective security, but will also add another dimension to our economic interaction."
"We hope to make significant progress at this round, not because of any perceived deadline, but because it is in our mutual interest to do so," he added.
"We look forward to productive discussions in the next few days, in the spirit of equality and common respect, a genuine interest to promote mutuality of benefits and support each other’s goals, and jointly contribute to the peace and stability of our region," Batino said.
As this developed, Ambassador John said that the guiding principle of the negotiations is to enhance the effectiveness of the agreement through the MDT.
"And I think that we’ve seen over the last many decades the effectiveness of the MDT but an agreement like this also proves the vibrancy of the MDT. It’s something that can be strengthened through further implementing steps that we’re taking here with this agreement," he added.
John also said that from the outset of this was the respect for the sovereignty of thePhilippines
"We hope to work with the Philippine side through this agreement on achieving minimum credible defense and strengthen the capacity of the Philippine defense forces," theUS
The 7th round of talks followed the sixth one held earlier this month inWashington , D.C.
In the sixth round of negotiations, both panels went through the entire draft agreement and reached consensus on many provisions, including on the proposed accord’s preamble, purpose and scope, definition of terms, ownership of constructed infrastructure, coordination on security, contracting procedures, and resolution of disputes.
The agreed minutes of the sixth round described the discussions as “substantive and productive.”
The other members of the Philippine negotiating panel are Ambassador Lourdes Yparraguirre, Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya, Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III and DND Assistant Secretary for Strategic Assessments Raymund Jose Quilop.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=628568
The seventh round of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation (EDC) Agreement between the
"We welcome Ambassador Eric John and General Joaquin Malade to the warm weather of
"As we begin what is now the 7th round of negotiations, this may be a good time to recollect why we are meeting here today. We recall that under the Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT), our countries are bound to separately and jointly, by self help and mutual aid, maintain and develop our individual and collective defense capabilities," he added.
Batino also emphasized that over the past 60 years, this partnership has evolved.
"And we are challenged to continue to find ways to ensure our alliance remains responsive to the changing regional security environment," he said.
"And due to this development, the
"Thus, we are mindful of the need to make adjustments in the implementation of the MDT to ensure that our constitutional requirements are fully observed," he stressed.
"We also understand the changes that have taken place in the
The Philippine panel head also stressed that the agreement reaffirms the two nations commitment to the enduring alliance.
"As we seek to build a minimum credible defense posture, we are leveraging our long history of partnership to meet both traditional and emerging challenges, and extend our areas of cooperation to new grounds, like humanitarian assistance and disaster relief," Batino stressed.
The DND official stated that the Philippine side expects that "this agreement will not just bolster our collective security, but will also add another dimension to our economic interaction."
"We hope to make significant progress at this round, not because of any perceived deadline, but because it is in our mutual interest to do so," he added.
"We look forward to productive discussions in the next few days, in the spirit of equality and common respect, a genuine interest to promote mutuality of benefits and support each other’s goals, and jointly contribute to the peace and stability of our region," Batino said.
As this developed, Ambassador John said that the guiding principle of the negotiations is to enhance the effectiveness of the agreement through the MDT.
"And I think that we’ve seen over the last many decades the effectiveness of the MDT but an agreement like this also proves the vibrancy of the MDT. It’s something that can be strengthened through further implementing steps that we’re taking here with this agreement," he added.
John also said that from the outset of this was the respect for the sovereignty of the
"We hope to work with the Philippine side through this agreement on achieving minimum credible defense and strengthen the capacity of the Philippine defense forces," the
The 7th round of talks followed the sixth one held earlier this month in
In the sixth round of negotiations, both panels went through the entire draft agreement and reached consensus on many provisions, including on the proposed accord’s preamble, purpose and scope, definition of terms, ownership of constructed infrastructure, coordination on security, contracting procedures, and resolution of disputes.
The agreed minutes of the sixth round described the discussions as “substantive and productive.”
The other members of the Philippine negotiating panel are Ambassador Lourdes Yparraguirre, Ambassador J. Eduardo Malaya, Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III and DND Assistant Secretary for Strategic Assessments Raymund Jose Quilop.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=628568