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Escudero wants renegotiation of RP-US VFA


Senator Francis Escudero on Tuesday said he wants to "renegotiate" at least two points in the controversial Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between the Philippines and the United States. Escudero, who heads the Senate committee on national defense and security, said he wants to focus on the criminal jurisdiction and the definition of "visiting" under the VFA. "Where have you seen a visit that lasts 365 days a year? That's not a visit. They should change the name or follow the definition of a visit," he said in an interview with reporters on Tuesday. President Benigno Aquino III has earlier said he wants to "refine" some provisions in the RP-US treaty. Escudero said any "refinements" in the treaty will have to go through the Senate. Earlier, Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago had called for the termination of the VFA. Escudero, however, said terminating the treaty will be the last option, noting that the VFA still has some advantages. "There is a value into it. It’s worth about 60 to 80 million dollars a year in military aid, in training," he said, adding that "in fairness" to the American soldiers, they help whenever there are disasters in the country. But Santiago noted that the US does not recognize the VFA as a treaty because its Congress never ratified the agreement, which the Philippine Senate ratified in 1999. Senator Loren Legarda, head of the foreign relations committee, said they plan to review the VFA and determine whether there is merit in the resolution filed by Santiago. In 2009, Senator Francis Pangilinan also filed a resolution against the VFA, saying it violates the country's constitutional provision banning the presence of foreign military bases, troops, or facilities in the country. Also last year, the Senate adopted Resolution No. 205 that called for the renegotiation of the VFA. But Santiago said that the Department of Foreign Affairs has yet to submit its recommendations to the Senate. The RP-US agreement provides that it shall remain "in force" until 180 days expire from the date on which either party notifies the other party in writing that it desires to terminate the agreement. - KBK, GMANews.TV

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