U.S.–Philippine Alliance

U.S. military agreement between the United States and the Philippines that guaranteed a U.S. military presence in the Philippines from 1901 until 1991. For almost a century, the U.S. military maintained two major bases in the Philippines: Clark Air Force Base and Subic Bay Naval Station. Subic Bay was designated a U.S. naval station after the 1901 U.S. invasion that ended Spanish rule in the Philippines. Prior to [Page 785]World War I, Subic Bay was the largest training facility for U.S. Marines. In 1902, Fort Stotsenberg, renamed Clark Air Base in 1947, was opened in the Philippines' Pampanga province.

The United States controlled the Philippines until the end of World War II, when the islands finally gained independence. Then, in March 1947, the Philippines signed an agreement that allowed the United States to maintain military bases on the islands for 99 years. In addition to the U.S. military presence, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) maintained an active role in the Philippines. Throughout the Cold War and the Korean War, Subic Bay and Clark Air Base remained important logistical support bases for the United States. During the Vietnam War, air traffic at Clark Air Base reached as high as 40 transports per day bound for Vietnam.

In 1966, the duration of the U.S.–Philippine agreement was reduced to 25 years, with the expiration to occur in September 1991. The bases remained important to U.S. interests during the oil crises of the 1970s, and regular deployment of Subic Bay–based naval units to the Indian Ocean began at that time. Carrier forces from Subic Bay were also deployed to the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea during the 1979 Iranian revolution and during the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in 1979 and 1980.

In 1986, long-standing political opposition to dictator Ferdinand Marcos within the Philippines finally pressured the Philippine government into calling an election. The opposition, led by Corazon Aquino (the widow of Marcos's main political opponent, Benigno Aquino), campaigned on a demand for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the bases. Aquino triumphed in the election, and her victory led to the drafting of a new Philippine constitution.

Under the new constitution, foreign bases, troops, and facilities would not be allowed in the country unless a new treaty was ratified by a two-thirds vote in the Senate. Although President Aquino went against her campaign promises and called for the extension of the bases treaty, the Philippine Senate voted 12–11 to reject it, as thousands of Filipinos marched in opposition. As a result, the U.S. bases were closed in 1992.

Since the closures of Clark and Subic Bay, the United States has been looking for ways to maintain its influence in the region. Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the government has been even more concerned with the establishment of military bases near vital U.S. interests in Southeast Asia. The United States became concerned that the Philippines could become a sanctuary for al-Qaeda operatives fleeing Afghanistan after the U.S. invasion there. Domestic terrorism in the Philippines, including the kidnapping of foreigners, perpetrated by the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf, made the Philippine government eager for an antiterrorist alliance, as well.

...