US Embassy in Manila welcomes ruling on EDCA constitutionality

The United States Embassy in Manila welcomed the constitutionality of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which was upheld by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

“The US welcomes the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the EDCA, which will further strengthen the US-Philippine bilateral relationship,”the embassy said in a statement.

READ: Supreme Court upholds legality of Edca

In a ruling, the EDCA was upheld by a vote of 10 in favor of it. Four were against it and one took no part.

EDCA was signed in 2014 by the Philippine and United States governments. This will allow the US to rotate its troops, store equipment and operate facilities in Philippine bases, initially for 10 years.

Scheduled to meet in Washington on Tuesday are Department of National Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin, Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and their counterparts Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Secretary of State John Kerry to tackle EDCA and the South China Sea row.

“EDCA is a mutually beneficial agreement that will enhance our ability to provide rapid human assistance and help build capacity for the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” the embassy said.

“We look forward to working closely with our Philippine partners on the implementation of this agreement,” it added. CDG

READ: Gazmin hopeful for favorable ruling on Edca