RP to press U.S. on pledge to help fight terrorists<\/p>\n
Agencies, Manila<\/p>\n
Manila will ask Washington for the immediate delivery of
\nhelicopters, patrol boats and rifles to help fight Moro militants
\nwhen U.S. President George W. Bush visits on Saturday, the
\nPhilippine defense chief said.<\/p>\n
Washington, which has designated its closest security partner
\nin Southeast Asia a major non-NATO ally, has pledged to provide
\nManila with more than US$30 million in hardware and training.<\/p>\n
"Our government will thank but remind U.S. President Bush
\nabout the military equipment he had promised because we really
\nneed those things to effectively fight terrorists," Defense
\nSecretary Eduardo Ermita said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
He said the Philippine military lacked mobility and firepower
\nto eliminate threats from the al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf in the
\ntroubled southern Philippines.<\/p>\n
"We have an immediate need of vital equipment that will boost
\nthe effectiveness of the armed forces," said a draft document
\nprepared by the defense department, outlining points for talks
\nbetween Bush and President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.<\/p>\n
"Foremost is the dire need of helicopters."<\/p>\n
Twenty second-hand UH-1H helicopters, a Cyclone-class patrol
\nboat and 30,000 M-16A1 assault rifles were promised when Arroyo
\nmet Bush at the White House in May.<\/p>\n
An additional 10 helicopters in the form of spare parts and a
\nrefurbished C-130 Hercules transport plane were included in the
\nsecurity package, Ermita said.<\/p>\n
Bush has also pledged $30 million to develop war-torn areas of
\nthe southern island of Mindanao once Manila strikes a peace deal
\nwith the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest Muslim
\nrebel group.<\/p>\n
Manila is expected to get further access to U.S. military
\nequipment and supplies after Washington named the Philippines on
\nOct. 6 as a major non-NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
\nally.<\/p>\n
"This provides the legal foundation for broadening U.S.
\nmilitary and security aid to the Philippines," the defense paper
\nsaid. "This will be our ticket to better security."<\/p>\n
But a source in the defense department told Reuters that
\nManila could not expect to get new military hardware, even after
\nit won the coveted "major ally" tag.<\/p>\n
The source said experts from the U.S. Pacific Command who had
\naudited the Philippine military's capabilities did not recommend
\n"acquiring additional platforms".<\/p>\n
"The experts team suggested that we focus more on improving
\nour logistics system, paying more attention to spares and other
\nmaintenance cases," the defense source said.<\/p>\n
Separately, Philippine President Gloria Arroyo on Tuesday
\ndenied allegations the country's top terror suspect was executed
\nin cold blood to present a publicity coup ahead of U.S. President
\nGeorge W. Bush's visit.<\/p>\n
Opposition politicians have reacted with anger and skepticism
\nto government claims Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) bombmaker Fathur
\nRohman Al-Ghozi was killed in a shoot-out with the security
\nforces on southern Mindanao island late on Sunday.<\/p>\n
But Arroyo remained defiant: "I stand by the operational
\nreport of the authorities on this case," she said.<\/p>\n
Some opposition figures have alleged Indonesian Al-Ghozi was
\nkilled to prevent him revealing police complicity in his
\nembarrassing escape from the national police headquarters jail in
\nManila in July.<\/p>\n
Senator Aquilino Pimentel said: "It looks like al-Ghozi and
\nothers before him were silenced to prevent them from spilling the
\nbeans on the authorities who made their escape possible."<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer on
\nTuesday said there was no independent confirmation of the death
\nof Al-Ghozi.<\/p>\n
"We only have the information provided to us by the
\nPhilippines," Downer told commercial radio. "We don't have any
\nindependent way of verifying this information."<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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