Philippines again suspends scrapping of VFA troop pact with US, amid South China Sea tensions, Covid-19 vaccine donations

President Rodrigo Duterte terminated the Visiting Forces Agreement with the US last year but has suspended that decision for another six months

This comes as South China Sea tensions with China rise and after the US added the Philippines to the list of countries it is donating coronavirus vaccines to

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte will study the VFA pact for another six months as both sides address his concerns about it. Photo: AP

Published: 10:06pm, 14 Jun 2021

The Philippines has for the third time suspended a decision to scrap a two-decade-old Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States, its foreign minister said on Monday, amid a territorial dispute with China in the South China Sea.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin said the suspension would be for a further six months while President Rodrigo Duterte “studies, and both sides further address his concerns regarding, particular aspects of the agreement”.

The Philippines is a treaty ally of the United States, and several military agreements are dependent on the VFA, which provides rules for the rotation of thousands of US troops in and out of the Philippines for war drills and exercises.

Duterte last year notified Washington he was cancelling the deal, which came amid outrage over a senator and ally being denied a US visa. The pact would have ended in August had Duterte not extended its life for a third time.

His change of heart came as tensions increased between the Philippines and China over the disputed waters of the South China Sea, which China claims almost in whole.