US, Philippines to announce new EDCA sites as soon as possible - US official

BASA AIR BASE, Philippines (Reuters) - The United States and Philippines will announce new sites as soon as possible for an expanded Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), which gives the Western power access to military bases in the Southeast Asian country.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr last month granted the United States access to four military bases, on top of five existing locations under the 2014 EDCA agreement.

U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall spoke after meeting Philippines' defence chief Carlito Galvez at the Basa Air Base in Pampanga, north of the capital Manila, where they led a groundbreaking ceremony for the rehabilitation of the base's runway.

    "Today's event is a physical manifestation of our Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, a key pillar of the US-Philippine alliance. It builds our mutual defence treaty that applies anywhere in the South China Sea or the West Philippine Sea," Kendall said in a speech.

    The rehabilitation of the runway is part of $82 million that the United States has allocated toward infrastructure investments at the existing five EDCA sites.

(Reporting by Karen Lema, Poppy McPherson; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor, Martin Petty)