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SENATORS FAVOR OKAY OF P1B FOR NAIA GENERATORS
POE SEEKS PROBE ON PANAY ISLAND POWER CRISIS
NEWS / A3
NEWS / A3 VOL. XXXVII • NO. 78 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • THURSDAY, MAY 4, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
‘We’ll have your back in SCS’ Pentagon chief tells PBBM amid new PH-US defense guidelines
By Vince Lopez
W
ASHINGTON— The United States “will always have the Philippines’ back” in the South China Sea or elsewhere in the Indo-Pacific, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin assured President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday (Thursday in Manila). “So make no mistake Mr. President, we will always have your back in the South China Sea or elsewhere in the region,” Austin said to Mr. Marcos, who met with the top American defense officials at The Pentagon, the US Defense Department’s headquarters. The US and the Philippines are also moving toward real-time sharing of military information and greater coordination to guard against any coercive behavior by China in the South China Sea and around Taiwan, according to a fact sheet released by the Pentagon. The fact sheet covered the US-Philippine defense cooperation guidelines Wednesday after US President Joe Biden and Mr. Marcos adopted them following their meeting at the White House this week. In reply to Austin, President Marcos said that the background “of the strengthening relationship between our Next page
LONG-STANDING ALLIES. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is welcomed by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III at the Pentagon late Wednesday evening (Manila time). The 9Philippine leader is accorded full military honors, including a 21-gun salute. Mr. Marcos is joined by Speaker Martin Romualdez and Defense OIC Carlito Galvez Jr. in his meeting with Austin.
100 Chinese ships continue to swarm Julian Felipe Reef—PCG chored in the West Philippine Sea, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported on Wednesday. A WEEK after they were first spotted, In a public briefing, PCG spokesperover 100 suspected Chinese maritime son for West Philippine Sea, Commodore militia (CMM) vessels were still an- Jay Tarriela said the CMM ships have
By Charles Dantes and Rey E. Requejo
been sighted in the Julian Felipe Reef since April 22. “There are still more than 100 Chinese maritime militia in Julian Felipe (Reef),” Tarriela said. Next page
US trip yields over $1.1b in investment pledges Mr. Marcos, delegation off to London Executives from pharmaceutical By Vince Lopez and Othel V. ness process outsourcing--committed to invest more than $1.1 billion in the and biotechnology leader Moderna, Campos Philippines and told visiting President based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, AMERICAN companies—includ- Ferdinand Marcos Jr. they were eager to told President Marcos they intended to ing those involved in pharmaceuticals, tap the country’s “critical mix of talent set up a vaccine-making facility in the semiconductors, solar power and busi- and global business service expertise.” Next page
today for coronation of King Charles By Vince Lopez PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr., First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and their family are leaving the United States today to proceed to London for the Grand Coronation of Britain’s King Charles III slated on May 6, joining other world leaders and dignitaries. The First Family’s trip, following the President’s five-day official visit to the US, is in response to the invitation sent by the United Kingdom to Mr. Marcos
as relayed by UK Ambassador Laure Beaufils. In a statement, Malacañan Palace confirmed the President had accepted the invitation for his attendance at the coronation of the new British sovereign. It was still unclear at presstime who in the presidential entourage to the US would accompany the Marcoses to London as well. The coronation will be held at Westminster Abbey on Saturday (Sunday in Next page
4 million kilos of smuggled sugar to be sold cheap at Kadiwa stores By Macon Ramos-Araneta
SIGNIFICANT GAINS. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and members of his delegation secures over $1.1 billion in investment pledges during his meeting with several business groups at Blair House in Washington DC.
DILG chief to name high-level ninja cops By Joel E. Zurbano and Charles Dantes INTERIOR and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. said Wednesday he is set to reveal the names of resigned police generals and colonels who are suspected to be involved in the illegal drug trade. “Just wait. It’s now with the National Police Commission (Napolcom) and I, myself sit there as the chairman. With me is the new chief of PNP, Gen. (Benjamin) Acorda, and our vice chairman (Alberto) Bernardo and there are other commissioners. We are going to make a statement. Just give us about probably two days so we can cover all the legalities. When we make a statement, we want to make sure that everything is really airtight,” Next page
AT LEAST 4,000 metric tons or 4 million kilos of seized smuggled sugar were approved to be sold at Kadiwa outlets at a cheaper price, the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said on Wednesday. At the televised public briefing, SRA
acting administrator Pablo Luis Azcona said the sugar will be sold at P70 per kilo. “We still have an additional 6,000 MT confiscated sugar. Hopefully, it will also be released once it is proven safe and approved for sale, for donation to Kadiwa,” he added. Next page
Brace for new heat records: UN raises alert on El Niño by July THE United Nations warned Wednesday of a growing likelihood the weather phenomenon El Nino will develop in coming months, fueling higher global temperatures and possibly new heat records. The UN’s World Meteorological Organization said it now estimated there was a 60-percent chance that El Nino would develop by the end of July, and an 80-percent chance it would do so by the end of September. Next page
BRACING FOR EL NIÑO. A farmer, Eduardo Rossel, 62, walks along a dried-up rice field in Brgy. Maname in Naic, Cavite on May 3, 2023. The state weather bureau said that based on recent conditions and model forecasts, the El Niño phenomenon might “emerge” in the rainy season between June and August. Danny Pata