Manila to move air force, navy nearer disputed sea

MANILA — The Philippines plans to relocate major air force and navy camps to a former United States naval base north-west of Manila to gain faster access to waters being contested by Beijing in the South China Sea, according to the country’s defence chief and a confidential government report.

Defence Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said yesterday that, as soon as relocation funds are available, the government plans to transfer air and naval forces and their fleets of aircraft and warships to Subic Bay, which has become a busy free port since the 1992 departure of the US Navy.

“It’s for the protection of our West Philippine Sea,” Mr Gazmin said from South Korea, where he was on a visit, using the name adopted by the Philippine government for the disputed South China Sea. “We’re looking now for the funding,’’ he said.

He added that Subic Bay is a natural deep harbour that can accommodate two large warships acquired recently by the Philippines from the US, a defence treaty ally, whereas the current harbour at the naval fleet base at Sangley Point in Cavite province, south of Manila, is shallower.

The first, a former US Coast Guard cutter, was relaunched as the Philippines’ largest warship in 2011. President Benigno Aquino will lead ceremonies on Aug 6 to welcome the second ship at Subic, the navy said.

A confidential Defence Department document obtained by The Associated Press said Subic’s location will cut reaction time by fighter aircraft to contested South China Sea areas by more than three minutes compared with flying from Clark airfield, also north of Manila, where some air force planes are based.

The report said the cost of repairs and improvements for an air force base in Subic would be at least 5.1 billion pesos (S$149 million) compared with the estimated 11 billion pesos it would cost to build a new base, because the vast complex already has a world-class runway and aviation facilities.

Subic’s international airport has been underutilised since US courier giant FedEx transferred its lucrative regional hub from Subic to China in 2009, officials said.

The Philippines is planning to grant visiting US forces, ships and aircraft temporary access to more of its military camps to allow for a larger number of joint military exercises than are currently staged each year.

A larger US presence could be used for disaster response and serve as a deterrent to what officials say have been recent aggressive intrusions by China into its territorial waters.

Philippine vessels backed off from the disputed Scarborough Shoal last year after weeks of a tense stand-off with a Chinese surveillance ship, a move that gave Beijing effective control over the vast fishing ground off the country’s north-west.

Meanwhile, the Philippines and Japan — which has a separate dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea — pledged last week to strengthen maritime cooperation and seek peaceful resolutions to maritime disputes. Japan and China have been engaged in a tense dispute over islands claimed by both nations in the East China Sea.

“We reviewed the security challenges that confront our nations, and pledged to cooperate in advancing our common advocacy for responsible action from international players,” Mr Aquino said after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Manila on Saturday.

As part of the agreement, Japan will provide a yen loan to equip the Philippine Coast Guard with 10 new patrol vessels and ¥10 billion (S$129 million) of standby credit for disaster response, Mr Abe said. Agencies