China warns Philippine-US base deal 'endangering regional peace'

BEIJING: China warned on Tuesday that Washington was “endangering regional peace” in a new deal with the Philippines that will see four additional bases be used by US troops, including one near the disputed South China Sea and another not far from Taiwan.

“Out of self-interest, the US maintains a zero-sum mentality and continues to strengthen its military deployment in the region,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.

“The result will inevitably be increased military tension and endangering regional peace and stability,” she added.

Manila and Washington agreed in February to expand cooperation in “strategic areas” of the Philippines as they seek to counter Beijing’s growing assertiveness over self-governed Taiwan and China’s construction of bases in the South China Sea.

The 2014 Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, known as EDCA, gave US forces access to five Philippine bases.

It was later expanded to nine, but the locations of the four new bases were withheld until Monday while the government consulted with local officials.

The four sites had been assessed by the Philippine military and deemed “suitable and mutually beneficial”, the Presidential Communications Office said in a statement Monday.

The US Department of Defense confirmed that the locations announced were the four new EDCA sites.

It also said in a statement it would add to the “$82 million we have already allocated toward infrastructure investments at the existing EDCA sites”, without specifying by how much.

Three of the sites are in the northern Philippines, including a naval base and airport in Cagayan province and an army camp in the neighbouring province of Isabela, Manila’s statement said.

The naval base at Cagayan’s Santa Ana is about 400 kilometres (250 miles) from Taiwan.

Another site will be an air base on Balabac Island, off the southern tip of Palawan Island, near the South China Sea.

Cagayan Governor Manuel Mamba has publicly opposed having EDCA sites in his province for fear of jeopardising Chinese investment and becoming a target in a conflict over Taiwan.

But Philippine acting defence chief Carlito Galvez told reporters recently the government had already decided on the sites and that Mamba had agreed to “abide with the decision”.

The agreement allows US troops to rotate through the bases and also store defence equipment and supplies.