Satellite imagery shows that Philippine military bases open to US troops have expanded more slowly than expected, according to a Chinese think tank.
In a report published on Thursday, the Beijing-based South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI) zoomed in on the nine sites covered by the Enhanced Defence Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) between the two treaty allies.
It said the sites reflected Washington’s efforts to transform the Philippines from a “strategic rear” into a “forward hub” for operations aimed at countering China.
The nine EDCA sites comprise five facilities originally designated under the agreement and four additional locations announced in 2023, including three in northern Luzon near Taiwan and one on Palawan facing the South China Sea, where tensions between Manila and Beijing have risen in recent years.
According to the report, the network of bases forms a strategic posture that “locks the Taiwan Strait from the north and controls the South China Sea from the south”.