Marcos Jr. gifts deeper military presence to US

Within two-and-a-half years in Malacañang, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has practically gifted the United States its intent to re-establish a deeper and stronger military presence and influence in the Philippines.

He did so under the aegis of the 2024 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s persistent coaxing during four official visits to the country. In his last visit early this week, a military intelligence-sharing agreement called the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) was signed by him and Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr.

The accord purports to enable the two allies to have “real-time classified intelligence and information-sharing for a common operating picture, and it will help boost interoperability for many, many years to come,” according to Austin.

The two defense secretaries led the ground-breaking ceremony of the Combined Coordination Center (CCC) at Camp Aguinaldo, the AFP’s headquarters. The CCC, Austin pointed out, “will be a place where our forces can work side by side to respond to regional challenges.” He capped his remarks with the oft-repeated US “iron-clad commitment” to the Philippines’ defense.

Expectedly, the progressive people’s organizations are highly critical. Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) immediately denounced the GSOMIA as “a blatant act of subservience [to the US]” and accused the Marcos Jr. administration of being “corrupt and treasonous” by surrendering the country’s security interests to the US.

Noting that the agreement does not have an expiration date, Bayan warned it could be a tool for the US to exert indefinite influence in the country’s security policies. As a prerequisite to the signing of the agreement, American officials were allowed to inspect more potential EDCA sites. The GSOMIA has yet to be approved by the President, but apparently it is already a done deal at the defense ministerial level.