Whereas Filipinos and Americans fought together in World
War II, and an estimated 1,000,000 Filipinos gave their lives to defend
freedom;
Whereas the United States and the Republic of the
Philippines signed the United States-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty in
1951;
Whereas the Philippines and the United States are
longstanding allies, as demonstrated by the Mutual Defense Treaty, cooperation
in conflicts since World War II, and the United States designation of the
Philippines as a Major Non-NATO Ally;
Whereas the Clark Veterans Cemetery in the Philippines is
the final resting place for the remains of thousands of United States and
Filipino veterans from the United States Army, United States Marines Corps,
United States Navy, United States Air Force, United States Coast Guard,
Philippine Scouts, and their dependents from seven wars since 1900;
Whereas the United States Government administered and
cared for the Clark Veterans Cemetery from 1900 to 1991;
Whereas the United States Government seeks to maintain an
alliance with the Government of the Philippines that promotes peace and
stability in Southeast and East Asia, rule of law and human rights, economic
growth, counter-terrorism efforts, and maritime security;
Whereas United States naval ships visit Philippines’
ports, and the United States and Philippines’ military forces participate in
combined military exercises under the Visiting Forces Agreement established in
1998;
Whereas the people and Governments of the United States
and the Philippines share a common interest in maintaining freedom of
navigation, unimpeded lawful commerce, and transit of people across the seas
and subscribe to a rules-based approach in resolving competing claims in
maritime areas through peaceful, collaborative, multilateral, and diplomatic
processes within the framework of international law;
Whereas the Philippines has served ably for the past three
years as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) country coordinator
for the United States;
Whereas the United States Government and the Government of
the Philippines work closely together in the struggle against terrorism to make
local communities safer and help establish an environment conducive to good
governance and development;
Whereas the navy of the Government of the Philippines has
received a United States Coast Guard cutter and assistance in establishing a
coastal radar system to enhance its monitoring of its waters, with a second
cutter due to be transferred soon;
Whereas the United States Government works closely with
the Government of the Philippines on humanitarian and disaster relief
activities, and in the past has provided prompt assistance to make United
States troops, equipment, assets, and disaster relief assistance
available;
Whereas the Mutual Defense Board and the Security
Engagement Board serve as important platforms for the continuing stability of
the long-standing alliance between the Philippines and the United States in a
rapidly changing global and regional environment;
Whereas the Bilateral Security Dialogue is an important
policy venue for setting the policy direction and providing guidance for all
aspects of the alliance relationship;
Whereas Philippines military forces have supported over
the years many United Nations peacekeeping operations worldwide;
Whereas the United States ranks as one of the Philippines’
top trading partners, with 11 percent of the Philippines’ imports coming from
the United States and 15 percent of exports from the Philippines delivered to
the United States in 2010;
Whereas total United States foreign direct investment in
the Philippines was approximately $7,000,000,000 at the end of 2009;
Whereas the Philippines is one of four countries that has
been invited to participate in the new Partnership for Growth Initiative, which
promotes broad-based economic growth in emerging markets;
Whereas many Americans and Filipinos have participated in
people-to-people programs such as the Peace Corps, the International Visitor
Leadership Programs, the Aquino Fellowship, Eisenhower Fellowships, and the
Fulbright Scholar Program;
Whereas an estimated 4,000,000 people living in the United
States are of Filipino ancestry, over 300,000 United States citizens live in
the Philippines, and an estimated 600,000 United States citizens travel to the
Philippines each year;
Whereas the U.S.-Philippines Society was recently
established to broaden and expand interaction between and understanding of the
United States and the Philippines in the areas of security, trade, investments,
tourism, the environment, history, education, and culture;
Whereas the alliance between the United States and the
Philippines is founded on core values that aim to promote and preserve
democracy, freedom, peace, and justice, and is fortified by the two nations’
partnerships in defending these values;
Whereas the Government of the Philippines seeks to improve
governance, strengthen the rule of law, and further develop accountable,
democratic institutions that can better safeguard human rights, secure justice,
and promote equitable economic development;
Whereas His Excellency Benigno S. Aquino III, President of
the Republic of the Philippines, is scheduled to visit the United States in
June 2012; and
Whereas Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary
of Defense Leon Panetta met with their Philippine counterparts in Washington,
D.C. on April 30, 2012, and reaffirmed that the United States and the
Philippines are longstanding allies, that the United States Government is fully
committed to honoring mutual obligations with the Philippines, and that the
alliance continues to serve as a pillar of the Philippines-United States
relationship and a source of stability in the region: Now, therefore, be
it
That—
(1)the
Senate—
(A)celebrates the
60th Anniversary of the United States-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty and the
vitality of the overall bilateral relationship;
(B)confirms the
alliance’s centrality and enduring value as one of the key pillars of peace,
stability, and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region and as a key tool in
addressing the emerging security environment in the region; and
(C)encourages both
countries to continue high-level consultations; and
(2)it is the sense
of the Senate that—
(A)the United States
Government should use the U.S.-Philippines Bilateral Security Dialogue and the
Mutual Defense Board and Security Engagement Board to promote greater alliance
cooperation and enhance bilateral security ties, including support for
Philippine defense modernization, for the rotational presence of United States
Armed Forces in the Philippines and for increased humanitarian and disaster
relief preparedness activities;
(B)the United States
Government should redouble efforts to expand and deepen the economic
relationship with the Government of the Philippines toward achieving
broad-based economic development in that country, including by working on new
bilateral initiatives that support the efforts of the Government of the
Philippines to reform its economy and enhance its competitiveness, and through
trade-capacity building;
(C)the Government of
the Philippines should continue its efforts to strengthen its democratic
institutions to fight corruption, curtail politically motivated violence and
extrajudicial killings, expand economic opportunity, and tackle internal
security challenges;
(D)after close
consultation with the Government of the Philippines, the United States
Government should designate an appropriate United States entity to be
responsible for making necessary arrangements to ensure ongoing maintenance of
Clark Veterans Cemetery in the Philippines; and
(E)the United States
Government should continue efforts to assist the Government of the Philippines
in the areas of maritime security, maritime domain awareness, humanitarian
assistance and disaster relief, and related communications infrastructure to
enable enhanced information-sharing and overall military
professionalization.