Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Alberto Romulo is open to a renegotiation of the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) to clear up some of the perceived vague provisions of the treaty, including the provisions on determining the right of custody over United States soldiers accused of crimes in the country.
Romulo reportedly said that the Philippines and the US may be able to renegotiate through diplomatic means some of the provisions of the VFA if those are found to be inefficient in safeguarding the country’s sovereignty compared to similar military agreements forged by other countries with the US.
"If there are any differences, those could be settled on the diplomatic level and through negotiations," DFA spokesman Gilberto Asuque quoted Romulo as saying.
Romulo was supposedly referring to the apparent differences between the VFA and the military treaty of Japan with the United States, specifically those provisions on each treaty concerning the granting of custody of visiting US soldiers accused of crimes.
The military treaty between Japan and the US explicitly states that custody of US soldiers accused of crimes should be turned over to Japanese authorities as soon are they are formally charged.
The VFA, on the other hand, provides the Philippine government with an option to request for custody of accused US soldiers in "extraordinary cases," but the decision of whether to grant such requests rests with the US.
|
