Indo-Pacific Command chief Paparo pays courtesy call on Marcos

United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo on Tuesday paid a courtesy call on President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. in Malacañang Palace.

During the visit, Marcos said he has a lot of things to discuss with the US military official. He said Paparo would be visiting Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) locations.

"I'm sure we'll be seeing more of you—, us going to see you and you going to see us. We have a great deal of—, we have many subjects to discuss for the United States and for the Philippines," Marcos said.

"I'm glad that you are able to find time to tour with us in the Philippines. I understand that you were going to visit some sites and one of the EDCA sites so you will see the true situation on the ground," he added.

Signed in 2014, EDCA grants US troops access to designated Philippine military facilities, allowing them to build facilities and preposition equipment, aircraft, and vessels.

Currently, there are nine EDCA sites:

• Antonio Bautista Air Base in Palawan
• Basa Air Base in Pampanga
• Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija
• Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu
• Lumbia Air Base in Cagayan de Oro City
• Naval Base Camilo Osias in Sta Ana, Cagayan
• Lal-lo Airport in Lal-lo, Cagayan
• Camp Melchor Dela Cruz in Gamu, Isabela
• Balabac Island in Palawan

Last April, US President Joe Biden requested an additional $128 million for infrastructure projects in 2025 including those located in the EDCA sites.

Following the June 17 incident between Filipino and Chinese troops near Ayungin Shoal in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippines and United States committed to invest in Washington's rotational force posture under EDCA.

According to the Pentagon, Defense chiefs Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Lloyd J. Austin III had a phone call, wherein "Both officials also reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the U.S.-Philippine alliance in support of their shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific, including through cooperation with like-minded partners and bilateral initiatives to strengthen information-sharing, enhance the capability of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and invest in U.S. rotational force posture under the EDCA."

In May of this year, Paparo vowed that the US military stands ready to defend the region against threats to its peace and stability amid China’s aggression in the South China Sea.

Paparo said the command would work with allies and partners to preserve the free and open Indo-Pacific.

"We must be ready to answer PRC's (People Republic of China's) increasingly intrusive and expansionist claims in the Indo-Pacific Region," Paparo had said in his remarks following the INDOPACOM Change of Command at the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii.

Amid the dispute between the two countries, Marcos became the first Philippine president in November last year to visit the US Indo-Pacific Command.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion in annual ship commerce. Its territorial claims overlap with those of the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei.

A portion of the South China Sea within the Philippine exclusive economic zone has been renamed the West Philippine Sea.

Tensions between China and the Philippines have continued to escalate as both sides traded accusations over a series of incidents in the disputed waters. — VDV, GMA Integrated News