Exclusion of SCS from ‘Balikatan’ meant to avoid stoking tension

The exclusion of South China Sea as a venue for the 2017 Balikatan Exercises is meant to avoid stoking tension in the disputed area, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Saturday. 

A report by GMA News' JP Soriano on "24 Oras Weekend" quoted Lorenzana as saying that the joint Philippine-US military exercises this year will focus on humanitarian and disaster response (HADR) and counter-terrorism capabilities.

"We are concentrating on HADR, counter-terrorism, at saka ano pang dapat gawin d'yan ano. But no more ... President [Rodrigo Duterte] doesn’t want to antagonize some people in the neighborhood," Lorenzana said.

This is the first time that the Balikatan dropped South China Sea as a venue for the military exercises, the report said.

US Ambassador to Manila Sung Kim on Saturday joined Lorenzana at the commemoration rites of the the Fall of Corregidor on Corregidor Island, Cavite.

In his speech, Kim pointed out that that Philippine-American relations remain strong despite the change in leadership in the two nations, citing the 33rd Balikatan exercises as proof to the enduring friendship.

"Our nations' military organizations are preparing to train shoulder-to-shoulder in Balikatan 33 starting in a couple of days. We do this not because we want war, but because like the defenders of Corregidor 75 years ago, we strive for peace," Kim said.

The Balikatan exercises will run from May 8 to 19 in several areas in Luzon and Visayas. —Joseph Tristan Roxas/LBG, GMA News