Originally posted by the Voice of America.
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US May Adjust Joint Military Training With Philippines

by Carla Babb

   PENTAGON --

   A top U.S. Army general says his forces "may have to make some
   adjustments" to upcoming joint exercises in the Philippines if the new
   government no longer wants to conduct military combat readiness
   exercises.

   In an interview with VOA, Lt. General Stephen Lanza, the commander of
   the Army's I Corps who leads several international military exercises
   in the Pacific, said the U.S. military was prepared to change next
   year's joint exercises with the Philippines to humanitarian and
   disaster relief training.

   "If we change the training," Lanza said, "We would probably look at
   putting a different force and a different capability in the Philippines
   versus the initial one that had been planned to go there."

   Territorial defense

   Previous training between the longtime allies focused on enhancing the
   Philippines' territorial defense.

   News of the potential change to 2017 exercises comes as new Philippine
   President Rodrigo Duterte has criticized the Obama administration and
   taken steps to align more with China.

   Duterte announced in October that he wants U.S. troops out of the
   Philippines, "maybe in the next two years."

   On Thursday, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said it is
   "unlikely" the Philippines will allow the U.S. military to use
   Philippine bases to launch freedom-of-navigation patrols in the South
   China Sea.

   Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has criticized the Obama
   administration and taken steps to align more with China. Duterte
   announced in October that he wants U.S. troops out of the Philippines,
   "maybe in the next two years."

   Training 'payoffs'

   Despite recent developments, U.S. military officials say the
   relationship between the two countries remains strong.

   "We have seen a continued need and continued desire to train with U.S.
   forces, specifically the Army, by the Philippine military," Lanza told
   VOA.

   He said both countries have seen "payoffs" from previous training
   exercises in terms of enhancing military readiness and
   military-to-military relationships.

   "I think that everything we do in the Philippines and everything that
   we do in the Pacific, whether it be regionally or globally, matters,"
   Lanza said, "and some of the feedback that we've gotten from the
   Philippine military is that operations like that have been helpful to
   them in moving their military forward."