US forces returning to Philippines to counter China threats

By JIM GOMEZ
Associated Press

SUBIC BAY, Philippines (AP) — The United States is rebuilding its military might in the Philippines more than 30 years after it closed its bases there. Washington has been reinforcing an arc of military alliances in Asia in a starkly different post-Cold War era in which the perceived new threat is an increasingly belligerent China. Last week, the longtime allies announced that rotating batches of American forces would gain access to four more Philippine military camps, aside from five other local bases, under a 2014 defense pact. News of the decision to allow an expanded American military presence in the country is rekindling memories of thousands of U.S. sailors pumping money, life and hope into the local economy. But there’s also backlash about the danger it could put the country in.