Oppose use of Calayan island for US war prepositioning

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Ang artikulong ito ay may salin sa Pilipino

News today that around 25 hectares of land in Calayan island, one of the country’s northernmost islands, have been “donated” by the local municipality to the Armed Forces of the Philippines highlight the rising militarization of the northern outskirts of the country following instigation by the US government and military.

The Filipino people must oppose any plan to allow the US military to deploy its forces and hardware in the Calayan island, even as they oppose the construction of US military bases and facilities in at least four other areas under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA).

These US military bases and facilities are a direct assault on the country’s sovereignty and policy of neutrality. These are magnets for attacks by the enemies of the US.

Claims that the build up of US military forces in the region, especially in the northern parts of the Philippines, are not directed against any country, is false public posturing to obscure the fact that the US is now vigorously pulling the country into a conflict with China. Over the past few weeks, the US has staged back to back war games in the country, together with the Philippines, Japan, Australia and other US allies, conducted in a way that China considers militarily provocative.

Hundreds of miles away from its coasts, the US military has now deployed at least three aircraft carriers and naval strike groups in the South China Sea, and has pressed the militaries of its allied countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, the United Kingdom and others to deploy their own troops and military equipment in the area. There is now a rising spiral of military build-up between the US and China, increasing the risk of armed conflict.

Oppose use of Calayan island for US war prepositioning