RP-Australia Sofa talks in final stages

DEFENSE Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr. said on Wednesday that the Philippines’ negotiations for a Status of Forces Agreement (Sofa) with Australia are in the “finishing stages” even as he expressed hopes of forging a security agreement with the said country soon.
       In addition, Cruz said that the government has established a Security Engagement Board (SEB) with the US government.
       “I think there’s a good chance that we can conclude it [Sofa] this year . . . that’s our target as soon as practicable,” Cruz said.
       Once approved, Cruz said that Filipino and Australian soldiers could conduct joint military exercises either in the Philippines or in Australia.
       “There are already talks [about] agreement on the treatment of visiting forces with Australia . . . It [Sofa] just allows the joint training exercises with Australians,” Cruz said.
       But Cruz said that the RP-Australia Sofa is still subject to Senate approval.
       “Definitely we will consult the chairmen of the Senate’s foreign relations and national defense committees on this,” Cruz said.
       He said that once a Sofa with the Australians is forged, the defense department would work to negotiate similar agreements with neighboring Asian countries.
       Cruz said that the Sofa with Australia would work similar to the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) that was signed by the Philippines and US governments in the late ’90s The RP-US VFA was ratified by the Senate in 1999.
       US and Filipino troops have conducted more than a dozen joint maneuvers aimed at enhancing their interoperability since the RP-US VFA’s ratification.