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The Philippines and Japan set to sign a reciprocal access agreement this year,
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which is similar to Manila's Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States.
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The National Security Council,
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which rejects China's claim of internal understanding for a new model
03:34.7
with the Marcos administration over the Ayungin Shoal.
03:38.5
And another price hike for gasoline,
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while diesel and kerosene see a price cut next week.
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Good afternoon, I'm Stanley Palizade.
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You're watching Top Story.
03:59.8
The Philippines and Japan expected to sign a reciprocal access agreement before the year ends.
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This was announced by the National Security Council.
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The Defense Pact, which is similar to Manila's Visiting Forces Agreement with the U.S.,
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allows both nations to deploy troops to each other's countries and hold joint maritime drills.
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Tokyo and Manila started negotiations for the agreement in November 2023.
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several other countries are also expressing interest,
04:29.8
in having a similar agreement with the Philippines,
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but they weren't named.
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It's moving at a quick pace.
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It's moving at a quick pace.
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There has been several visits by Japan negotiators to the Philippines.
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Philippine negotiators have been in Japan as well.
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In Washington, during the trilateral summit,
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this was also discussed between the Philippines and Japan.
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During exchanges,
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between the Philippines and Japan,
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after the trilateral meeting,
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this was also discussed,
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and the Prime Minister of Japan and the President of the Philippines
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has given the instructions to our negotiators to proceed immediately.
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President Marcos earlier said that the Defense Pact will improve Manila's defense capabilities
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and clarify that the deal is not meant to antagonize any country.
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A significant game changer,
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that's how Philippine security officials are describing the delivery to Manila
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of the Brahmos missile system,
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considered to be the fastest cruise missiles in the world.
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National Security Council Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya says
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it will buttress the country's coastal defense
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and improve maritime domain awareness.
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The missile system is part of the $375 million deal
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signed by the Philippines and India in 2021.
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He also said that it will improve maritime domain awareness
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and the capacity to deter and defend.
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And one of these deterrence capacities,
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in addition to our F-A-50 fighter jets
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and our offshore patrol vessels,
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is the Brahmos missile.
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This is more of a deterrence.
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It's like, if suddenly,
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other countries will think about entering our waters
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because we now have several batteries of these Brahmos missiles.
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Which is going to be deployed to the Philippine Marines.
06:37.2
The mayor of Tuguegarao City in Cagayan Province
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hits back at critics over the surge of Chinese students in the province.
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Mayor Mayla Rosario Tinque rejects allegations.
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They are a threat to national security.
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The mayor says Chinese students have been in the city
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even before the province agreed to host a military facility
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under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement.
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Tinque also denies allegations
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Chinese students are buying off college diplomas.
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She calls the accusations racist and discriminatory.
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Now, relevant government agencies,
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including the Immigration Bureau,
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are looking into the influx of Chinese college students in Cagayan.
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Some lawmakers have raised national security concerns now
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over their presence in the province,
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which holds the law.
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One of the joint military facilities of the Philippines and the U.S.
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We're now joined by the spokesperson of the Armed Forces of the Philippines,
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Colonel Francel Margreth Padilla.
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Colonel Padilla, welcome to Top Story.
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Good afternoon and thank you for having us in Top Stories.
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Alright, it's good to have you here.
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Now, government agencies on the lookout now
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for supposed Chinese sleeper cells.
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This is, of course, in connection with the influx of Chinese students
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in areas where military facilities of the Philippines and the U.S.
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are headquartered.
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Now, on the part of the AFP now, Colonel Padilla,
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what are the activities related to this?
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The probe, I mean, and, you know, the investigations,
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and have you found anything so far?
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In terms of the AFP, sir,
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we are conducting our internal investigation.
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Over and above that,
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we are also collaborating with the different agencies
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that has a stake in this news,
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particularly with the Bureau of Immigration,
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how many students have entered,
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how many have legal papers,
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do they have student visas, and all those things.
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Also, with the Department of Foreign Affairs.
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And, of course, for the AFP,
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we are mainly concerned, of course, with national security.
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That's why also we are collaborating with
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Philippine National Police in this peace and security of the area.
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With the reports that we got,
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there has been a number that was given
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stating therein that there is a false claim
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with the actual numbers,
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that it is not around 4,600,
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but around 486 foreign students,
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particularly in one university,
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which is St. Paul University,
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the only university that is authorized by CHED
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to accept foreign students.
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And this university is located in Tuguegarao?
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In Tuguegarao City.
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We've already, well,
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spoken to the mayor of Tuguegarao.
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She was saying, of course,
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that this may have been blown out of proportion.
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Really, she was saying that the students have been enrolled
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way before the military facilities were accommodated
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in the province of Cagayan.
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Now, you were saying, you know,
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the Bureau of Immigration is sort of taking the lead
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in terms of investigations.
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What about security at the facilities right now, particularly that one in Cagayan?
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That is of course to ensure that the access to these facilities remain very limited.
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What can you say about the security detail and the preparations as well in these facilities as of now?
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You mean to say the EDCA sites, sir?
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The EDCA sites, because the premise is that these sleeper cells or supposed students will be spying at the EDCA sites.
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Yes, sir. The EDCA sites are actually located inside military facilities.
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So therefore, being in a military facility, anybody who's going to go in and out will go through the required military protocols.
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Of course, it is not open.
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You should have the proper, especially if you are a foreign national, you will have the proper cleavances in order for you to enter military camps.
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So that goes to the EDCA sites in Cagayan as well.
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All right. Going back to the Chinese students now, there is of course a risk that this may be misconstrued as something that may target a specific nationality or racial group.
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Now, on the part of the armed forces of the Philippines, how do you make sure that the conduct of your intelligence,
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investigations will be objective and unassailable?
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Yes, of course, we are looking at national security implications.
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And so we are conducting our internal investigation.
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But in this case, there is an executive order, number 285, which was signed in 2000,
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creating for a committee which is tasked to monitor activities for foreign students.
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So they will be the main players in this investigation, so to speak.
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It is composed of Commission on Higher Education.
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Which heads the committee and members are from the Bureau of Immigration, the National Bureau of Investigation,
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the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs, and the Department of Education.
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So not being a member here, the armed forces of the Philippines will be conducting our internal investigation.
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All right. Lastly now, is the probe limited to those areas in Cagayan or are there other provinces of interest that the AFP is looking into as of the moment?
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Not necessarily, sir. The AFP, as you said, we are protecting the people and securing the state.
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That is holistic towards the whole Philippine archipelago.
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So it goes to show, sir, that the whole Philippines will be having our own different efforts
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in order to make sure that the people wherever will be secured.
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All right. On that note, Colonel Francel Margareth Padilla, spokesperson of the armed forces,
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of the Philippines, thank you so much for joining us today.
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Thank you, sir. Good afternoon.
13:02.1
Moving on, the Philippine government belies China's claims there exists an internal understanding with Manila
13:07.1
on how to handle tensions in the West Philippine Sea.
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The National Security Council dismisses Beijing's allegations as nothing more than an invention.
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This statement comes after the Chinese embassy in Manila accused the Marcos administration of abandoning
13:21.4
its alleged arrangement with Beijing over the Ayungin Shoal.
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China's repeatedly made this claim without offering any proof.
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This new model is nothing more than a new invention.
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The propaganda masters at the Chinese embassy are clearly working overtime
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to sow discord and division in our country for one purpose alone.
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To push their claim that the Philippines is the one causing conflict.
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China gets called out by the Group of Seven over its militarization and intimidation tactics
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in the South China Sea.
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In a communique released by foreign ministers of the G7,
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they oppose China's dangerous use of its Coast Guard and maritime militia
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to change the status quo by force or coercion.
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The G7 cited China's use of dangerous maneuvers and water cannons against Philippine vessels.
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There is no legal basis for China's expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea.
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The G7 represents the world's leading industrialized democracies consisting of Canada, France,
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the United States, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom.
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China firing back at the United States following Washington's arms control accusations.
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The U.S. Department of State earlier accused Beijing of failing to adhere to its nuclear testing moratoria
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as well as conducting censorship.
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The report ignores facts and is full of preconceptions.
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The report smears other countries with baseless accusations on their compliance.
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China firmly opposes it.
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We urge the U.S. to stop pointing fingers at other countries,
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take a hard look at its track record in arms control, disarmament, and non-proliferation,
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and earnestly respond to the legitimate concerns of the international community on the U.S. compliance.
15:46.2
A Philippine Environment Group calls for proactive measures
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to address the worsening plastics pollution in the country.
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Now that appeal made by the communities organized for resource allocation
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after a report identified the Philippines as the world's leading plastic polluter
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ahead of the International Earth Day on April 22nd, that's Monday.
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The group urges government to work with the private sector
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to reduce plastic usage among Filipinos and improve recycling efforts.
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One initiative the group recommends is offering assistance to communities
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to encourage locals to turn in waste that could still be recycled.
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For the Philippines, it is so unfair and it is one of the greatest social injustices
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to blame people for the issue of plastic pollution
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because we need government leadership in systemic change
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and more than that, we need companies to take the lead in better packaging solutions
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because for citizens that are fighting every day to meet basic needs,
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sustainability is usually unaffordable, inaccessible, and out of reach.
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Maritime organizations in Thailand are pushing for a uniform policy
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to address the dumping of fishing equipment in the oceans.
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This report tells us why these so-called ghost gears
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pose a threat to marine life and the environment.
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Details in this report.
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Beneath the waters of Thailand's Phuket,
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these divers untangle ghost gear caught on coral and trapping sea life.
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The lost or discarded fishing equipment is considered one of the deadliest forms
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of marine plastic waste.
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Thailand's scuba diving groups and marine organizations
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have been working to remove the ghost gear
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but say tracking its scale is problematic.
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Off the Phuket shore, divers are equipped with submersible gear,
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scissors, nets, and notebooks.
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They are recording data on their cleanup mission
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coordinated by the Environmental Justice Foundation or EJF.
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Natchanon Kiatkajornphan is a marine scientist.
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Firstly, we will record where we found it,
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the date, the depth in meters,
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what type of fishing gear,
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and what type of surface the gear is on,
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such as covering a coral reef, rock, or sand.
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About one million tons of ghost gear ends up in the ocean each year,
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according to the World Wildlife Fund.
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It breaks down into microplastics,
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which are consumed by marine animals,
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and can end up in the seafood humans eat.
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Experts say the lack of a coordinated strategy
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is standing in the way of more comprehensive and effective solutions
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to track, manage, or outlaw dumping of fishing equipment.
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Salisa Trapipitsarat is a senior campaigner
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at the Environmental Justice Foundation.
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We constantly collect discarded fishing gear.
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We have a strong scuba dive,
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and we have a strong scuba diving community.
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We have many government sectors working on this cleanup dive.
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However, even though there's a collection of waste,
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there's no uniform data collection.
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Some people collect waste and take it to the landfill.
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Some people collect and weigh it, or count pieces.
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But there's still no standard for collecting data from this waste.
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The data collected by divers is used to determine
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the extent of ghost gear and its environmental impact.
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It could prove crucial in securing appropriate legislation
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and action in the future,
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even before the waste ends up in the ocean.
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Once we have this data,
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various organizations can take the raw data
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and see if we should first address the plastic pollution,
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whether through policy, legislation, or management.
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We will take a short break.
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Stay with Top Story.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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We'll be right back.
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Because we have relaxed
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some of our quarantine methods
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and we have to work
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have allowed more transportation.
