This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- U.S. and Philippines make military plans to counter China
- Dozens of churches burned and looted in Egypt’s ‘Friday of Rage’
U.S. and Philippines make military plans to counter China
Philippine (left) and U.S. (right) troops conduct joint live fire exercises in Philippines in April (AFP)
Government officials from the Philippines have begun negotiations withthe United States over increasing the presence of the U.S. military inthe Philippines. The U.S. will deploy aircraft, ships, troops, andequipment in civilian and military facilities in the Philippines.According to Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Carlos Sorreta:
There is a sense of urgency in getting this agreementthrough…There are things that we need quite urgently that they canhelp. For example, building our capacities for being aware ofdevelopments in the region, watching movements, projectingmovements in our part of the world including the [South China Sea]… It’s all that and more.
Right now we desperately need this kind of awareness in this partof the world.
These talks are generating a great deal of controversy in thePhilippines. U.S. bases in the Philippines were forced toclose in 1992, and some Filipinos strongly oppose anything thatlooks like a return.
According to a statement by the Communist Party of the Philippines,the negotiations are nothing but a “masquerade”:
The plan to grant the US greater military access tolocal ports and infrastructure and extending rights to set up itsown facilities has long been agreed upon by the Aquino governmentand the US military.
Considering that the US has long been granted access by the Aquinoregime, the current round of negotiations will likely result inallowing the US to have exclusive access to certain facilities,which is a step further in formally allowing the return of the USmilitary bases.
However, these concerns are being blown away by China’s aggressivebehavior in the South China Sea, where it’s using its vast militarypower to follow a “Lebensraum” policy and take possession of islandsbelonging to other countries. Last year, China sent warships toScarborough Shoal, which is Philippine territory, and annexed it.Philippines officials have begun a military buildup to allow them toconfront China militarily, and negotiations with the U.S. are said tobe a temporary measure for protection of the country’s sovereigntyuntil it improves its own military capability. ABS-CBNnews (Manila) and Philippine Star
Dozens of churches burned and looted in Egypt’s ‘Friday of Rage’
Egyptians enjoy the beach while fires and riots burn in the background
Dozens were killed and hundreds were injured in Egypt on Friday duringthe “Friday of Rage” called by the Muslim Brotherhood to protest thecarnage earlier this week when hundreds of people, mostly in theMuslim Brotherhood, were killed in confrontations with securitypolice. Some 32 churches have been burned or looted in the violencesince Wednesday, mostly in the upper Egypt province of Minya, whichhas a history of sectarian tensions. Al-Ahram (Cairo)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Philippines, Carlos Soretta,China, Lebensraum, Scarborough Shoal,Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood