With the growing security challenges in the Asia Pacific region, the US government has sent US Marine Corp Commandant, General Robert Neller, to meet with Philippine military officials led by General Eduardo Ano, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
According to reports, both the leaders, representing their respective military organizations, discussed on how to sustain their military partnership and security in the region. The US embassy said that the focus of the meeting was on the bilateral engagements between the two countries, and the future of diplomacy and interoperability between them.
General Neller was received at Camp Aguinaldo by Philippine military and embassy officials, including Major General Emmanuel Salamat of the Philippine Marine Corps and US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim.
The US has been assisting the Philippines in suppressing terrorism in the Southern part of the Southeast Asian country. The US government has been supporting different campaigns by providing money reward to tipsters that could lead to the arrest of terror leaders.
The money reward practice in the AFP has led to the arrest of many suspected terrorists, including Zulkifli Abdhir also known as Marwan who was one of Southeast Asia's top wanted persons by the FBI in 2015. Marwan is known to be a bomb expert and has been training militants on managing explosive devices.
The US is also presently helping Philippine soldiers in the on-going battle in Marawi City. The US embassy earlier clarified that their military assistance in Marawi City is merely on intelligence sharing and technical advice and is not involved in any firefight.
