VZCZCXRO2740
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHML #0072 0090933
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 090933Z JAN 07
FM AMEMBASSY MANILA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 4514
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS IMMEDIATE
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RHHMUNA/CDRUSPACOM HONOLULU HI IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE

UNCLAS MANILA 000072 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP, PM, EAP/MTS, AND S/CT 
USPACOM ALSO FOR FPA HUSO AND J5 
SECDEF/OSD/ISA/AP (TOOLAN/BAILEY) 
JOINT STAFF/J5 (WILKES/ROBINSON) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PTER PREL EAID MOPS MARR RP
SUBJECT: ARROYO SHOWCASES US-PHILIPPINE PARTNERSHIP ON JOLO 
AND DEFENDS VFA 
 
¶1. (SBU) President Arroyo invited Charge Jones to accompany 
her on a January 8 trip to the southern island of Jolo, where 
the Philippine military, with the help of U.S. Joint Special 
Operations Task Force-Philippines (JSOTF-P) and USAID, 
continues to battle terrorists of the Abu Sayyaf Group and 
Jemaah Islamiyah.  She highlighted for the Philippine public 
the benefits of what she called the US-Philippine "strategic 
alliance against terrorism and poverty." 
 
¶2. (U) While on Jolo, President Arroyo and Charge inaugurated 
a $1 million USAID-financed road in the former terrorist 
stronghold of Parang, which will reduce driving time to Jolo 
City from a day to just a half hour.  Armed Forces of the 
Philippines Chief of Staff General Esperon, who later led a 
command briefing to the President, remarked to Charge that, 
as a young officer, it had taken him a week of hard fighting 
to reach the previously remote area.  President Arroyo and 
Charge also inaugurated a refurbished military trauma center 
at Camp Bautista, which will be used to treat wounded 
soldiers.  In her remarks to the soldiers and the press, 
President Arroyo especially applauded the Philippine military 
for its successful January 6 operation killing six 
significant terrorists (septel). 
 
¶3. (SBU) Beginning on January 6 and 7, the government-owned 
television station aired a new documentary explaining the 
Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the terms of the Smith 
custody transfer. The documentary highlighted the importance 
of the VFA and joint military exercises to the US-Philippine 
relationship. Malacanang has also commissioned US-based 
journalists to make a documentary on the US-Philippine joint 
activities on Jolo and the upcoming Balikatan exercises. 
Mission officers will provide all possible support for this 
endeavor. These public outreach efforts will complement the 
upcoming release of a Mission-produced documentary on the 
success of joint US-Philippine development and military 
operations on the former terrorist stronghold island of 
Basilan, as part of the Balikatan-02 military exercise. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Comment: Under President Arroyo's personal 
leadership, the Philippine government is now engaged in a 
more pro-active and sophisticated approach to explain 
publicly the value and importance of the Philippine 
partnership with the United States in the fight against 
terrorism and poverty, with a special emphasis on how the VFA 
makes such cooperation possible. We plan to reinforce this 
message in the coming weeks with the release of our Basilan 
documentary, the portcalls of the USS BLUE RIDGE, the 
Balikatan-07 exercise, and the visit of Undersecretary Karen 
Hughes, among other ongoing activities. 
 
Visit Embassy Manila's Classified website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm 
Jones