LABOR center Kilusang Mayo Uno slammed the administration of Pres. Noynoy Aquino today for allowing the US to use the Philippines as a military base for its war of aggression against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), saying the chief executive is using ongoing Balikatan exercises as an excuse to make the country a launching pad for US aggression.
“Aquino is a shameless US lackey. He has allowed the US to use our country as a military base for its warmongering and aggression against the Korean workers and people,” Elmer Labog, KMU chairperson, said.
The labor center made the statement following the opening today of another round of the US-RP Balikatan exercises in which about 4,000 US troops, the largest deployment of US troops this year, are expected to participate.
“Aquino’s foreign policy of absolute and unconditional surrender of our sovereignty has brought not only US troops but also the US’s war to our shores. We are being dragged into the US’s war of aggression,” Labog said.
“The US and the Aquino government are using the Balikatan exercises as an excuse for the US’ strategic positioning in its war of aggression against the DPRK and as part of its economic and military pivot to East Asia and the Pacific,” he added.
KMU insisted that US soldiers must immediately leave the country’s shores and demanded that the Balikatan exercises be stopped, saying the regular and increasing presence of US troops in the country is tantamount to the re-establishment of US bases that were kicked out for violating the country’s Constitution and national sovereignty.
“The US troops must go now! Their regular and growing presence in our territory is unconstitutional and poses a threat to our national security. The US has not even been held accountable for the damage it caused in Tubbataha,” Labog said.
“We have every reason to ward off these US troops. Freedom-loving Filipinos will fight until US troops are thrown out of the country, despite the Aquino government’s puppetry to the US,” he added.
The labor center also said that the US is obsessed with encircling China not because the latter poses a threat to the security of the US and its allies, but because it wants to force China to further liberalize its economy and adopt a US-style “democracy.”