MANILA – Discussions for a possible Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) between France and the Philippines is expected to start next month, which will allow French troops to train with the Armed Forces of the Philippines, France’s top envoy to Manila confirmed on Thursday.
In a press briefing, Ambassador Marie Fontanel said that a meeting between top defense officials of the two countries will be held in Paris, adding that the talks are slated on May 20 or May 21, 2024.
"We will have an opportunity in May to maybe start officially the negotiations, or at least discuss the modalities because there will be a meeting in Paris of the cooperation in defense committee, which is a regular committee, that has already taken place last year, (and held) every 18 months. It's a regular one," Fontanel said.
"That's the perfect occasion to officially discuss the ways to negotiate the VFA," she added.
Late last year, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and French Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu signed in Manila a letter of intent to bolster defense and security cooperation, which, Fontanel said, includes their "commitment to start negotiations for a VFA."
The goal for the upcoming bilateral defense meeting in France, she noted, is "to make progress on that."
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Recently, the Philippines signed separate defense cooperation agreements with the United Kingdom and Canada, as well as negotiating for a military access pact with Japan, called the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA).
Through the RAA, the accord will allow Japanese forces to join annual military exercises, such as Balikatan Exercises between Philippines and U.S. forces, once it is signed and ratified.
Humanitarian assistance to the Philippines from Japanese forces will also be facilitated faster due to a ratified RAA.
At present, the Philippines has an existing VFA with the U.S. which took effect in 1999 and serves as the legal basis allowing American forces to visit the country temporarily for military exercises or to conduct humanitarian and disaster response.
A similar accord was also forged between the Philippines and Australia, called the Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA) in May 2007, and later ratified by both parties.
Foreign troops are prohibited from establishing permanent military bases in the country as stated in the 1987 Philippine Constitution.
In 1992, the United States formally handed over its last military base in Southeast Asia to the Philippine government, closing the Subic Bay Naval Station after 94 years of U.S. military presence in the region.
In the same briefing, France’s envoy for the Indo-Pacific Marc Abensour said that France remains committed in ensuring the rule of law will prevail in the South China Sea, that it will remain “free and open”.
He also reiterated France’s support for the 2016 arbitral ruling and called it “a matter of principle” that they contribute to the compliance to freedom of navigation and overflights and UNCLOS in the South China Sea and everywhere in the world.
"It is also in that perspective that we recall the decision of the arbitral ruling," he added.
Abensour also noted that in the context of France's Indo-Pacific strategy, the Philippines is a "key partner" for France as both states are maritime nations.
France, he stressed, has a stake in the Indo-Pacific as it has overseas territories in the region, which is home to over 1.6 million French nationals.
While cooperation and engagement with China is important, Abensour emphasized that France “opposes any threat or coercion which is contrary to the rule of law.”
He also mentioned that although France does not take sides in the territorial disputes in the South China Sea, parties involved “should resolve the disputes through dialogue and peaceful means.”
"We are fully committed to freedom of navigation and overflight and UNCLOS and shared commitment that we have with many partners in the Indo-Pacific," he said.
