US to spend $66m on new facilities at Philippine army bases

Joint security deal

The Philippines on Tuesday said defence ally the United States had agreed to spend $66.5 million to start building training and warehouse facilities at three of its military bases, under a 2014 joint security deal. Construction of the projects in three of five Philippine sites outlined under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) will start next year, the Department of Defence said. "The department is committed to accelerate the implementation of the EDCA by concluding infrastructure enhancement and repair projects, developing new infrastructure projects at existing EDCA locations," it said. The two countries have a 70-year-old Mutual Defence Treaty and take part in dozens of joint training exercises each year, ranging from live fire to humanitarian missions and counter-terrorism drills. — reuters