PH, US tackling ‘gaps’ in defense talks

 News
Oct 032013
 
PH, US tackling ‘gaps’ in defense talks

Philippine Daily Inquirer 5:19 am | Friday, October 4th, 2013 MANILA, Philippines—Negotiators for the Philippines and the United States are addressing certain “gaps” in the key provisions of a framework agreement that would allow increased US military presence in the country amid a territorial dispute with China. What these “gaps in the critical provisions” are that need further discussions, the Philippine panel is not saying. But Defense Undersecretary Pio Lorenzo Batino said that the major provisions are what make the framework agreement “unique from other agreements.” “There’s more work needed to be done on these provisions that will define this agreement. Both parties recognize that we have to work on them with more deliberation,” Batino said. Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Carlos Sorreta, the spokesman of the Philippine panel, said the negotiators were able to cover a large number of provisions in the proposed agreement during the last four rounds of negotations. “However, there remain major details of the substantive issues which both sides need to iron out, and we want to make sure that this agreement would be mutually beneficial,” Sorreta said. The provisions needing “more focused discussions” are contained in the article that covers the scope, agreed installations or Armed Forces of the Philippines facilities, prepositioning of defense equipment, supplies and materiel, ownership, and security. Despite the “gaps,” the panels ended the recent round of negotiations “with optimism,” said Batino. “Both sides look forward to the next round. Therefore, we are very hopeful on finding consensus within the remaining Read More …

Asia stocks muted on US government shutdown

 Economy
Oct 032013
 
Asia stocks muted on US government shutdown

BANGKOK — Asian stock markets Thursday withstood some of the gloom seeping into other financial markets as the partial shutdown of the U.S. government dragged on for a third day. Some nonessential public services across the U.S. ground to a halt earlier this week after Congress failed to approve short-term funding for the government after the fiscal year ended Monday. Some 800,000 federal workers have been put on unpaid leave and many agencies and programs across the U.S. have been idled. Analysts said investors in Asia were more or less expecting lawmakers from the two political parties to negotiate a solution or put the shaky U.S. economic recovery at risk. “I think people believe the Republicans and Democrats will come to their senses sooner or later, so they should stop behaving like children,” said Francis Lun, chief economist at GE Oriental Financial Group in Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 1 percent to 23,214.40. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.1 percent to close at 14,157.25. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4 percent to 5,234.90. Benchmarks in India, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand also rose. Singapore’s benchmark index fell. Markets in mainland China and South Korea were closed for public holidays. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 European stocks presented a mixed picture. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.2 percent to 6,451.14. Germany’s DAX was down less than 0.1 percent to 8,625.28. France’s CAC-40 lost 0.3 percent to 4,147.13. Stocks on Wall Street appeared on their way to losses, with Read More …

Unfazed, US to fund local NGOs

 News
Sep 302013
 
Unfazed, US to fund local NGOs

US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr.: Advancing shared vision. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Amid the pork barrel scam that may well have tainted the image of the country’s thriving nongovernment organization community, the United States on Monday announced a P984-million ($24 million) grant-giving facility that aims to fund over the next five years deserving Philippine NGOs in pursuing “innovative solutions [to] the country’s development challenges.” The US Embassy in Manila said the Philippine-American (Phil-Am) Fund, initiated by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), is a component of the continuing implementation of the American Partnership for Growth Program (PFG), a wide-ranging program that seeks to help the Philippines steer itself toward inclusive growth. Reflecting its continuing faith in the country’s NGO community, the US Embassy announced the grant facility just as the Philippines continues to investigate the misappropriation of state funds for bogus programs through fake NGOs allegedly perpetrated by the now jailed Janet Lim-Napoles. “I am very pleased to be a part of this exciting and innovative project that will help advance our shared vision of broad-based and inclusive growth under the Partnership for Growth Initiative. Under the PFG, our governments are committed to work together to achieve inclusive economic growth in the Philippines,” said US Ambassador Harry Thomas Jr. The Philippines is one of only four countries where the United States is implementing the White House-led PFG program, which seeks to improve the country’s education, governance, justice and financial systems through collaborative engagements between the US and Philippine officials Read More …

No escaping China for Aquino, Obama

 News
Sep 292013
 
No escaping China for Aquino, Obama

US President Barack Obama (right) and President Aquino: China on the agenda. MALACAÑANG PHOTO MANILA, Philippines—Defense cooperation, including China’s incursions into Philippine territory, will top the agenda of President Aquino’s meeting with US President Barack Obama during the latter’s two-day visit to the country next month. In a radio interview, Ricky Carandang, head of the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Group, said Aquino and Obama will talk at length on defense cooperation, specifically the “rotational presence” of US troops in the country. The meeting will be held on either Oct. 11 or 12. “Whether or not we will sign something during the Obama visit is not something I can answer at this point. What I can assure our countrymen is that these discussions with the US will lead to enhanced security for the Philippines and that’s why we’re entering into these discussions,” Carandang said. With the pivot of the United States toward East Asia, “our ties will continue to grow stronger,” he added. Carandang said the talks would likely touch on China’s undiplomatic efforts to expand its maritime borders in the South China Sea, including into portions of the West Philippine Sea. “I think we cannot avoid talking about this (territorial dispute with China) because that is part of the context of our action to enhance our maritime security. This is one of the biggest issues concerning not only the Philippines, but also Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei and Japan,” Carandang said. The Philippines and the United States are currently Read More …

First in Asia: Philippine bananas to be sold in US

 News
Sep 142013
 
First in Asia: Philippine bananas to be sold in US

Photo from official account of Philippine Embassy in the United States. @philippinesusa. MANILA, Philippines – The first batch of fresh Philippine bananas has finally arrived in the United States, the Philippine Embassy in the US announced Sunday. A shipment of 7.047 metric tons of highland cavendish from Bukidnon arrived September 9 in California, making the Philippines the first Asian country to export bananas to the US. “With this shipment, we are hopeful that Philippine bananas would be able to find and satisfy a niche in the competitive US banana market,” said Philippine Ambassador Jose Cuisia Jr. The shipment came after eight years of negotiations with the US on quarantine and sanitation issues. “Philippine bananas are among the best in the world and there is opportunity to bring in the unique and special banana varieties like lakatan and latondan, which Filipinos in the US have long been craving for and which Americans can learn to love,” said Agriculture attaché Dr. Josyline Javelosa. Javelosa said the shipment, a first of an estimated 3,000 metric tons from Dole Philippines, was transferred to a ripening warehouse and will soon be available in the Los Angeles market. She said they are hoping that the new market will help the Philippine banana industry, especially Mindanao which is recovering from the onslaught of the recent typhoons. With the successful shipment, US joined other Philippine banana importers – Japan, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Korea, China, Singapore, the Middle East, Canada, Russia and Indonesia. Bananas are among the country’s dollar earners. Read More …

Info sought on Fil-Ams in alleged gunrunning

 News
Sep 142013
 
Info sought on Fil-Ams in alleged gunrunning

Two of three Maralit brothers pose with their high-powered firearms in these photos, copies of which were forwarded to the Inquirer from the US Attorney’s Office that have them and other pictures as evidence. Rex and Wilfredo Maralit who work for the New York Police Department and Customs Border Protection respectively were arrested separately in the US and charged with smuggling weapons to the Philippines. A third brother, Ariel, is in Manila and at large. PHOTOS FROM US ATTORNEY’S OFFICE MANILA, Philippines—The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has asked the United States government for documents on the importation of high-powered firearms into the Philippines allegedly by three Filipino-American brothers to determine if they had accomplices in the country. Fernandino Tuason, BOC Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service director, said he had asked the US Department of Homeland Security for copies of the shipping documents used by the Maralit brothers in their alleged international gun smuggling activities. “(The Americans will) be giving us shipping documents so we can get more information about their modus operandi,” Tuason said in an interview. “Up to now we have not seen any documents; it is just hearsay or news reports so we contacted our counterpart in the US. We will use these documents to backtrack and find out who their contacts are in the Philippines,” he said. Tuason said the BOC could go after the recipients of the firearms if it were proven that they did not pay import duties or failed to secure the necessary gun Read More …

Fil-Am YouTube hit remakes ‘90s Top 40 single

 News
Sep 072013
 
Fil-Am YouTube hit remakes ‘90s Top 40 single

SBWIRE/INQUIRER.net US Bureau 12:57 am | Sunday, September 8th, 2013 Michelle Martinez. Screengrab from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FxJs8hH4x4 SAN MATEO, California—If you were part of the US dance-club scene in the mid-‘90s, then you’ll likely remember the Top 40 single “Do You Miss Me?” performed by Jocelyn Enriquez and written by Glenn Gutierrez. The single peaked on several Billboard charts, including the coveted Top 40. The song was both a domestic and international hit. More than 15 years later, San Francisco multimedia producer Anthony Garcia, along with music producer Venice John Valdez (aka Tugbeats) and YouTube celebrity Michelle Martinez, have remade this single by giving it a new electronic dance music track inspired by Super Producer and DJ Dave Guetta. Accompanying the single is a slick new music video.
The support for this project has been overwhelmingly positive from the San Francisco Bay Area music community, with some of its top radio personalities agreeing to be a part of the music video. The list of celebrities includes 99.7 Now’s St. John, 106 KMEL’s LadyRay, 99.7 Now’s Strawberry, 103.3 AMP Radio’s Joe Breezy, and 99.7 Now’s Freska. A large part of the support is due to the song’s San Francisco origin. In addition to introducing the song to a whole new market, Garcia is following the millennial generation’s lead by producing singles and music videos independently, without the luxury of backing from a music label or media company. Garcia produced the majority of this project both on his smartphone and from his living room on Read More …

Govt probing Napoles assets abroad — BIR chief Henares

 News
Sep 052013
 
Govt probing Napoles assets abroad — BIR chief Henares

Commissioner Kim Henares of the Bureau of Internal Revenue said Thursday the government is already taking steps to probe businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles properties abroad. “We are coordinating with foreign governments kasi sa foreign governments pati bank accounts puwede namin makuha dito hindi,” Henares told reporters in Manila, adding that the government’s purpose was merely to “get information” from these foreign governments. The BIR is in the middle of investigating if Napoles, embroiled in a P10-billion pork barrel fund scam, has been paying the right taxes. Napoles had insisted her wealth came from legitimate sources, saying she owns shares in a mining company in Indonesia. It has likewise been reported thatvshe owns properties in the US. “If she has business abroad, mas malaki ang problema niya because the US tax you in a global manner… if you have a US connection,” Henares said. The BIR chief refused to elaborate further on her agency’s ongoing probe, saying: “Puwede kapag handa na kami, sasabihin ko.” Henares also revealed that some of the almost 30 properties earlier reported to be owned by Napoles could have been placed under other people’s names. Similar to doing a “google search,” Henares said her agency earlier asked around different agencies and searched their databases for any properties owned by Napoles. “So iyong nage-generate (so far i connection with Napoles) hindi nagmamatch sa 30 na real properties, 28 dati, ngayon 30… hindi sya nagma-match,” Henares said, adding the BIR is now in the process of tracing who the owners Read More …

UK-based private group sees slower growth for Phl

 Economy
Sep 042013
 
UK-based private group sees slower growth for Phl

MANILA, Philippines – The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) expects the economy growing by only 5.3 percent this year amid weak demand from China. “Strong growth in consumption and government spending in the Philippines will drive output up by 5.3 percent in 2013,” ICAEW said in a report. “While this is down on 2012, when GDP grew by 6.8 percent, it is 0.6 percentage points higher than average annual growth over the previous five years,” ICAEW said. This sharp deceleration from year-ago levels means slower growth for the second half of the year as the Philippine economy already grew by 7.6 percent in the first half. Moreover, this is below the government’s full-year economic growth target of six to seven percent this year. This expectation came as ICAEW expects growth in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to slow down to 4.7 percent this year from 5.5 percent in 2012. Business ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1 “This slowdown will be largely driven by easing demand from China while a squeeze on the availability of capital in 2014 and 2015 as US monetary policy is tightened will also hold back growth,” ICAEW said. ICAEW expects China’s growth to slow down to 7.2 percent this year, from an average of 10.5 percent in the last 10 years due to a drop in demand for Chinese exports. ICAEW also expects the economy to grow by 5.4 percent in 2014 before falling to 4.6 percent in 2015.

Military drills set amid talks on more US troops in PH

 News
Sep 022013
 
Military drills set amid talks on more US troops in PH

By Frances MangosingINQUIRER.net 3:18 pm | Monday, September 2nd, 2013 AFP FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines – About 2,300 members of the Philippine and US military will hold joint military drills later this month amid talks of increased rotational presence of US forces here and continuing tensions between Manila and Beijing over the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea). Part of the bilateral exercises include staff planning exercise to increase the capability to conduct bilateral maritime security and territorial defense operations, field training exercises and humanitarian and civic assistance projects. The three-week joint exercises hosted by the Philippine Marine Corps will start September 18 in several Philippine military camps including the Naval Education and Training Command in San Antonio, Zambales; Crow Valley in Capas, Tarlac; Marine Base Gregorio Lim in Ternate, Cavite; Marine Barracks Rudiardo Brown in Metro Manila; and at the Basa Airbase and Clark Field in Pampanga. The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit and 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade from the United States Marine Corps will be paired with Philippine Navy, Air Force and Army units in the annual Amphibious Landing Exercises 2014 dubbed as Phiblex 2014. “Phiblex 14 is designed to improve interoperability, increase readiness and enhance the ability to respond to natural disasters or other regional contingencies,” said First Lieutenant Vince Edward Salmingo, Public Affairs Officer of Phiblex 2014 in a statement. At the same time, Phiblex will also enhance local infrastructure and quality of life and build upon vibrant professional and personal relationships between Philippine and US Marines, Read More …

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