DEFENSE Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Friday, December 28, raised the possibility that the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty (MDT) between the Philippines and the United States (US) would be scrapped, if it is found "useless."
Lorenzana said the fate of the decades-old defense pact would depend on the findings of a thorough review that seeks to determine if it is still relevant to the country's national interest.
The Defense chief stressed that the end-goal of the review of the 1951 MDT was to "maintain it, strengthen it, or scrap it."
"That was done in 1951 and when that was done in 1951, there was this raging Cold War. May Cold War noon eh (There was a Cold War). Do we still have a Cold War today? Is it still relevant to our security? Baka hindi na (It may no longer be relevant)," Lorenzana told a press conference.
"Ang sinasabi kong review (the review) is not to strengthen or be again totally dependent on the US. Reviewing baka naman hindi na natin kailangan, 'di ba. We're reviewing it because perhaps, we no longer need it, do we)? That's 1951. It's 67 years old, 67 years old treaty," he added.
The Philippines and the US have been treaty allies since they signed the MDT on August 31, 1951, which seeks to bolster defense and security cooperation between the two nations.
Lorenzana said the Duterte government was not closing the doors on the possible scrapping of the defense treaty with the US, since the people are now living in a "modern" time.
Asked if the Duterte administration's improved ties with China had prompted the review of the defense treaty with the US, Lorenzana said the assessment was due to the "dynamics that is going on all over the world."
"This is no longer 1951, not even 1960s. This is 2018. So ito ba nakakasuporta pa sa ating national interest or not? Dapat 'yun ang ating maging ano (So does it support our national interest or not? That should be the consideration)," he said.
"We are going to approach this MDT, to look at it in the backdrop of what is happening in the area at saka 'yung interest natin (and our interest) as a nation, not the interest of other nations," he added. (SunStar Philippines)