Clinton pledges strong alliance with Philippines

MANILA (AFP) - – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton vowed Thursday to maintain a strong alliance with the Philippines as it fights Islamist militants who officials say are now using Iraq-style tactics.

Clinton's two-day visit came amid a backdrop of persistent violence from the Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf group in the volatile south of the country, where US Special Forces advisers are helping to train and equip Filipino soldiers.

"The United States is committed to a strong partnership and alliance with the Philippines," Clinton told a press conference with her Philippines counterpart Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo.

She said the Visiting Forces Agreement, a 1999 treaty governing the deployment of US troops in the Philippines, was "an important expression of our partnership" and Washington remained committed to helping in the fight against Islamic militants.

"I would just reiterate that the US stands ready to assist our friends in the Philippines who are seeking to counter terrorism and radical extremism," she 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 were an affront to the nation's sovereignty.

However US officials said they believed such sentiments were not shared among the broader Philippine population, and Romulo emphasised that the government was committed to the agreement.

"I think it has worked really well for us," he said at the press conference with Clinton.

A State Department official said earlier that 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.

Highlighting their ability to defy the military campaign, Abu Sayyaf militants on Monday dumped the severed head of a local school principal they kidnapped in October on Jolo island.

In September, two US soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb on Jolo in the deadliest attack by the Abu Sayyaf on the American contingent.

"There are indications that certain tactics and strategies that have been perfected in Iraq and elsewhere are tried in other theatres and we see some of that playing out in Mindanao and in other parts of the Philippines," the US official said.

Insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan have often resorted to roadside bombs to deadly effect against US and allied troops.

Both Clinton and Romulo said the US military presence proved especially helpful in providing relief for the victims of storms and floods wreaking havoc in the last six weeks.

Cheered by an estimated 2,000 students, who waved both the US and Philippines flags, Clinton visited a school in a Manila suburb that was badly flooded and received books and other supplies from the US government.

She announced an additional 5.2 million dollars in flood assistance for the Philippines, on top of the 14 million dollars already given.