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US Military Presence in RP a Must says Teodoro
By Bambi Lorica, MD
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Washington, DC, September 13, 2009 (Pinoy Global) - – Before leaving for NY last Thursday, September 10,
to meet with relevant UN officials, Philippine Secretary of Defense Gilberto Cojuangco Teodoro, took time out
of his whirlwind Washington DC official visit where he met with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and key
Pentagon officials, in order to interact with the FilAm Community at the Philippine Embassy.
He explained to the group, predominantly composed of the local press corps and FilAm Community Leaders,
that the main purposes of his visit was to continue a policy-centric dialogue with the secretary regarding
military alliance, as well as liase with US Intelligence officers regarding “shared concerns for regional
stability, counterterrorism and international peacekeeping.”
As chair of the National Disaster Coordinating Council, Teodoro also discussed non traditional defense
cooperation, specifically the "Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), a non-traditional security
initiative that increasingly becomes more important as a result of climate change and natural disasters that
know no borders".
Although he vehemently denied the presence of a permanent US military base in South Cotabato, he
emphasized that a regional American military presence in the Philippines is vital, for multiple reasons,
including counter-terrorism, regional stability and and intelligence gathering.
In response to questions related to the controversial Visiting Forces Agreement, Secretary Teodoro reassured
the audience that the VFA, just like any bilateral agreement, is enforced by a mutual defense board in which
activities have to be jointly approved by the US Secretary of State and the Philippine Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
While in Washington, DC, Secretary Teodoro also met with key Senators and members of Congress to
discuss Philippines-United States defense cooperation and the two countries’ strategic interests in the Asia
Pacific region. ,
Along with Special Presidential Representative Major General Delfin Lorenzana, Secretary Teodoro also
liaised with US Secretary of Veteran Affairs General Erik Shinsecki for continuous support of Filipino Word
War II veterans.
Secretary Teodoro ended his official U.S. tour with a meeting at the United Nations in New York on September
11, 2009 wherein he discussed with relevant UN officials the role of the Philippine Peacekeeping Contingent
in the Golan Heights, and other high risk global security issues. END
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Arlene Marie A. Lorica, M.D., F.A.A.P.
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty". --
Winston Churchill
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