Clinton in Manila to deepen defence ties

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US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton passes a guard of honour upon her arrival in Manila

MANILA, Nov 12 (AFP): US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in Manila Thursday in a bid to deepen defence ties with a country fighting Islamist militants who officials say are now using Iraq-style tactics.
The two-day visit comes as US Special Forces advisers are in the southern Philippines to train and equip Filipino soldiers in combatting the Abu Sayyaf group that is blamed for the Southeast Asian nation's worst terrorist attacks.
Clinton is likely to hear "strong support" from President Gloria Arroyo and her defence officials for the Visiting Forces Agreement, a 1999 treaty which governs the deployment of US troops in the Philippines, Arroyo's aides said.
On the eve of Clinton's visit, police broke up a protest by 70 left-leaning students in Manila who demanded the pullout of the US military advisers, saying they are an affront to the nation's sovereignty.
But a senior State Department official said most Filipinos supported the military ties with the United States.
Ahead of the visit, the Philippines foreign department also issued a statement reiterating its commitment to the military cooperation. "The Philippine government believes that the Philippines-United States Visiting Forces Agreement is indispensable to the nation's security," it said.
The State Department official said Clinton wanted to show a "strong commitment" to Manila in its fight against extremists, but it would be up to the new US Pacific commander, Admiral Robert Willard, to study strategies.
Philippine authorities say the Abu Sayyaf's numbers have fallen to 300-400 from about 1,000 eight years ago, when the US Special Forces arrived to begin training the Filipino military.
Analysts say US intelligence and weaponry helped Filipino soldiers capture or kill the main leaders of the Abu Sayyaf early in the mission.
But they said younger, more radical rebels had taken their place, as evidenced by persistent violence in the remote southern Philippine islands where the Abu Sayyaf is based and has support from local Muslim communities.
Clashes in the southern islands since the start of the year have left 48 Filipino soldiers and at least 70 Abu Sayyaf militants dead, according to a tally by AFP based on authorities' reports.