03 August 2002
Powell, Philippine Foreign Affairs Sec. Ople on Anti-Terror Efforts
(Cooperation against terrorism, Mideast peace topics of Manila
briefing) (2930)
Following is a transcript of a joint press conference in Manila August
3, with Secretary of State Colin Powell and Philippine Foreign Affairs
Secretary Blas F. Ople. The primary topic was cooperation in the war
on terrorism. Powell also responded to questions on the Middle East.
(begin transcript)
Joint Press Conference With Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas
F. Ople
Secretary Colin L. Powell
Manila, Philippines
August 3, 2002
PRESS SECRETARY BUNYE: Good morning once again. We will hear the
statement of Foreign Affairs Secretary Blas F. Ople.
SECRETARY OPLE: Thank you, Secretary Bunye. Good morning ladies and
gentlemen. We have just completed over an hour of what seems to me
very productive talks between us and Secretary of State Colin Powell
on a wide range of issues of direct interest and importance to both
our countries. Secretary Powell and I started today with a short
meeting after Secretary Powell called on the president. This was
followed by a larger group meeting between our two delegations.
These talks were in the nature of free and open discussions among old
friends on ways to further improve our relationship and how best to
face current and future challenges as strategic partners. The
president also expressed appreciation to the United States for its
efforts and contribution towards the success of our strategic
partnership. The president raised several issues with Secretary Powell
including trade, financing, development cooperation and tourism
issues. The president also raised issues relating to our World War II
Filipino veterans and to our Filipinos in the United States. The
global war against terrorism, the partnership between our two
countries in this world, the regional and global efforts against
terrorism were also discussed. The president cited in particular the
central role played by Secretary Powell in the successful adoption
last August 1 in Brunei of the ASEAN U.S. Joint Declaration for
cooperation to combat international terrorism. The president also
pointed to the successful conclusion of Balikatan 02-1 and that there
are very many valuable lessons learned by both our militaries that can
have much value to future exercises between our two countries.
There were no discussions in the proposed Mutual Logistics Support
Agreement. Our talk with Secretary Powell confirms my own impressions
of a reinvigorated relationship between our two countries, motivated
by mutual interest and a common desire to do our part to help peace,
stability and progress to the world.
The challenge now is to bring the momentum generated by our
strengthened security and defense cooperation relationship to bear on
other aspects of our relationship. I believe that today's talks were
an important step in that direction. Thank you.
SECRETARY POWELL: Thank very much, Mr. Secretary. I am very pleased to
be back in the Philippines and very pleased to just have a successful
conversation with the president reviewing a full range of issues that
exist between our two countries.
I believe it is very fitting that Manila is the capstone of my visit
to Southeast Asia because the alliance between the United States and
the Philippines has been a bulwark of freedom and stability in the
Asian-Pacific region.
Sixty years ago, our soldiers fought together in the Battle of Bataan.
Today, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder again in the fight against
terrorism. Last November, President Bush expressed his heartfelt
appreciation to President Arroyo for the Philippines principled and
courageous stand against terror. We applaud the Philippines role in
forging the May 2002 Trilateral Cooperation Agreement with Indonesia
and Malaysia. As Filipinos know only too well, terrorism threatens
every country, every continent. The United States is impressed by the
Philippine Army successes against the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group.
These (inaudible) have significantly reduced Abu Sayyaf's operational
ability even as we mourn Abu Sayyaf's victims. Many Filipino soldiers
have given their lives in the fight against Abu Sayyaf and in the
effort to secure the safe release of hostages. We honor their bravery
and their sacrifice.
The United States is proud that our armed forces are helping to train
and equip their Philippine Army counterparts to combat terrorists here
in the Philippines. On July 31 as was noted, Exercise Balikatan
successfully concluded. Our excellent cooperation with the Philippines
will continue on the civilian as well as military side. One important
avenue is our ongoing development assistance programs. We are devoting
over $100 million this year in such areas as law enforcement,
judiciary, the rule of law and education. All of this supports
President Arroyo's war on poverty.
We also remain strongly committed to our development programs to
foster a lasting peace in Mindanao. We support American investment and
President Arroyo's efforts for a strong (inaudible) campaign that sets
the stage for economic activity that can really make a difference in
Mindanao and elsewhere in the country.
As our friend and ally, the Philippines continues its determined
course toward security and prosperity and it can count on America's
enduring partnership and support.
Thank you very much.
QUESTION: I would like to congratulate you first for a well-applauded,
well-practiced song number in Brunei. (Laughter)
SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you.
QUESTION: Anyway, even as we acknowledged you have not touched upon
MLSA, we received reports that the U.S. has provided for the
Philippines $55 million for the anti-terror campaign and there are
suspicions though that this might be tied up with the signing of MLSA.
May we know exactly what are the terms of this $55 million anti-terror
fund coming from the U.S. government? And when it's coming?
SECRETARY POWELL: We are very pleased that we were able to provide $55
million in the supplemental and we will now work out the arrangements
as to how that money will be spent and what accounts it will be
provided. I do not believe it will be in any way affected by the
discussions with respect to the logistics agreement. The logistics
agreement we view as a fairly routine arrangement that is worked out
between the defense departments and we did not discuss it this morning
in our meetings and I assume that in due course will be worked out
between the two militaries.
QUESTION: Is this -- $55 million over and above the $100 million
assistance you mentioned a while ago?
SECRETARY POWELL: Yes, it is a supplemental that is in the 2002
supplemental. There are other funds for a variety of programs in the
Philippines, both in our 2002 and 2003 budget. We can provide our fact
sheet that lays out all of the programs. The significant thing,
though, is that the amount of support the United States is providing
to the Philippines, both in terms of military support, in terms of
development assistance, is being significantly increased and we hope
that will remain the case for several years to come.
As the president and I discussed earlier, there is a new program
coming along called the Millennium Challenge account where the United
States will make available to those nations who qualify for this
assistance -- infrastructure money that will go to build roads,
education systems, assist countries to develop the infrastructure they
need to attract more trade and more investment. I am quite sure that
the Philippines will be a prime candidate for support under the
Millennium Challenge account. That will be a couple of years in the
future but it too will be on top of all the other support we are
doing.
QUESTION: For Secretary Powell. Mr. Secretary, you said almost a year
ago that you would launch a war against terrorism to rout out
terrorists wherever they maybe. You've now visited six Southeast Asian
countries, which of course have been a focal point of terrorist
activities. Is there anyway you can evaluate how the war is going
after all this time -- whether the American people and people
elsewhere can feel safer?
SECRETARY POWELL: I think it is going very well. We saw what happened
in Afghanistan with the destruction of the Taliban, which was
harboring Al-Qaida. Al-Qaida is on the run. They are hiding. They are
still a danger to the world and we are going to continue to rout them
out. President Bush made it clear from the very beginning that this is
a campaign that will not be concluded in a few weeks or a few months
or even a year or two. It is going to take a long time. In order to
get these terrorists, not only in Al-Qaida, but in other terrorist
organizations such as Abu Sayyaf, we have to work with our friends and
allies. We have to connect our intelligence systems, connect our law
enforcement systems, look at the financial transactions that these
terrorist groups use to sustain themselves.
In that regard, I am very pleased with what we have been able to do
with nations around the world especially here in Southeast Asia and
the political declaration that we signed in Brunei the other day --
ASEAN and the U.S. -- is further evidence that everybody who
recognizes the danger knows we have to work together, knows that we
have to build capacity to work together, and we have to focus not just
on combat operations -- although that is important -- but law
enforcement operations, intelligence information and operations and
getting inside their financial systems.
I am very pleased with the level of cooperation we are receiving and I
think we are making progress. People are being picked up around the
world who if they hadn't been picked up would be well on their way to
conducting a terrorist act. A number of nations in Southeast Asia have
made important apprehensions in recent weeks.
QUESTION: Good morning, Mr. Secretary. I know that the MLSA was not
part of the discussions today, but it seems that everybody has that on
their minds especially the militants who are out demonstrating against
your visit. It seems that there's a lot of suspicion about what the
MLSA really is about and perhaps your visit here might help clarify to
them what kind of benefit the Philippines in particular would get from
this agreement and how much different it would be from the ACSA that
was proposed back in the 90's but was not passed because of opposition
to it.
SECRETARY POWELL: The MLSA is essentially just administrative
arrangements between the two parties, a servicing agreement. It is
usually negotiated and dealt with at a fairly middle-level, management
level, within our Department of Defense and doesn't usually come to
this level of attention or interest. But I know it is a matter of
great interest here in the Philippines, and I hope that once our
Department of Defense people working with the Armed Forces of the
Philippines have a chance to explain what is in it and how it benefits
both sides, the Philippine people will understand that there is
nothing mysterious about it. It is not an effort to insert ourselves
in any way into the Philippines that would be troubling anyone. It
doesn't deal with that at all. It is strictly a set of arrangements
between the two sides for a logistical support and accountability.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, I wonder if you could reflect to us all on
the problem the Middle East still represents to your war on terrorism.
You're in this part of the world but the real violence is happening
somewhere else. And could you talk about some of the conversations
you've had during your visit? Have people been consistently raising
their concerns about the violence there?
SECRETARY POWELL: Well, yes. Everybody is concerned about the violence
in the Middle East. It isn't just restricted to the nations in the
Middle East plus the United States. I think everywhere I have gone it
is been a subject of discussion. Everybody hopes that we could find a
way forward to peace. Everybody sees these terrible images on their
television sets, innocent lives being lost. We condemn those terrorist
attacks and we mourn for those who have lost their lives, but we can't
give up. We can't walk away from it. We must continue to find a path
forward. That is what the United States is committed to. That is what
President Bush has committed his Administration to. And so we continue
to meet with Arab friends. We continue to meet with our Israeli
friends, and I hope next week I will be able to meet with some
Palestinian leaders who have been given the authority to work with us,
and we will not give up on our quest for peace.
I have made this point at all of my stops this week, and I have gotten
support for those efforts. Everybody recognizes how difficult a
challenge it is, but everybody is supporting the United States in its
effort to find a way forward to create a Palestinian state that can
live side by side in peace with the state of Israel.
QUESTION: Good morning, Mr. Secretary. My question has something to do
with the plight of the overseas Filipinos being repatriated back here
in the Philippines. What commitment, assurances you give to President
Arroyo on the so-called humane treatment?
SECRETARY POWELL: I want to make sure I understood the question -- to
come back --
QUESTION: Overseas Filipino workers. Illegal residents.
SECRETARY POWELL: I'm not sure I understood what you --
QUESTION: For the so-called humane treatment for the Filipinos being
repatriated back here in the Philippines.
SECRETARY POWELL: Deportation?
QUESTION: Yes, deportation.
SECRETARY POWELL: We understand that this is a sensitive issue for the
Philippine people. I will go back with a message for my colleagues in
the departments of the United States government that worry about this
issue and let them know that even though we must follow our own laws
with respect to deportations, and deportations must occur, we have to
do it in a way that is dignified, and is sensitive to the feelings of
the people being deported, as well as sensitive to the feelings of the
Philippine people.
QUESTION: How about on reports that the Philippines will remain as a
theater of operation in East Asia for the global campaign against
terrorism?
SECRETARY POWELL: The Philippines is an important nation in the sense
of making a positive contribution in the global war against terrorism
both in terms of the agreement that President Arroyo entered into with
Indonesia and Malaysia and the support they gave to us in coming up
with the ASEAN plus U.S. declaration in Brunei; as well as everything
we have been doing with respect to Balikatan and going after Abu
Sayyaf.
The Philippines has been in the forefront of leadership in Southeast
Asia with respect to the global war against terrorism. I have found
support throughout Southeast Asia for this campaign because there is
not a nation in Southeast Asia which has not at one time or another --
or today -- been under the threat of terrorism. The message I wanted
to give to all of them and especially to the Philippines is that the
United States is united with you but we see it as more than just
counterterrorism, more than just military to military, but a broader
relationship that also focuses on economic development, development
assistance, trade, poverty elimination, educational activities,
everything we can do to strengthen democracy throughout Southeast
Asia, and especially to help leaders such as President Arroyo who are
taking bold, strong stances for democracy. We want to be seen as
standing alongside her and other leaders like her.
QUESTION: I have a question for the Minister. Sir, I think it's fairly
clear to most people what the U.S. would get out of a future military
presence in the Philippines. But what is it that your government sees,
if you do see as a positive, in having some kind of a U.S. military
presence in your country? Thank you.
SECRETARY OPLE: Yes. The Balikatan 02-1 exercises in Basilan certainly
do not conclude the training exercises between the forces of the
United States and the Philippines. It's just a beginning. The Visiting
Forces Agreement of 1999 and the Mutual Defense Treaty of 1951 spell
out the political framework for these exercises and already we see
some exercises going on in Central Luzon, different from the exercises
in Mindanao, in the sense that this is merely a continuation of all
the existing patterns of exercises designed to enhance the
inter-operability of the two forces in doctrines and equipment, in
personnel, and even in world views, I suppose, to prepare them for a
collective response in the event that there is a threat that must be
met in the future in this part of the world.
SECRETARY POWELL: May I add a P.S. to that? In the way the question
was phrased, there was something of a presumption that the United
States might see a benefit of a presence in the Philippines suggesting
that we are looking for some kind of permanent presence or going back
to where we were previously. Not the case. Everything we are doing is
consistent to the Mutual Defense Treaty, the Visiting Forces Agreement
of 1999. We are here to train with our Philippine friends, to help
them as appropriate, but the Untied States is not looking for bases or
new permanent presence in the Philippines or in this part of the
world.
Thank you very much.
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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