A strategic pearl for US-Philippine ties

[unhappycamper]

http://atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/SEA-01-071113.html



A strategic pearl for US-Philippine ties
By Al Labita
Nov 7, '13

MANILA - Nearly 600 kilometers southwest of the Philippine capital, workers are building an access road to link the mainland of Luzon to Oyster Bay on the island province of Palawan. The pristine island is a major tourist destination, but the project is not aimed at luring foreign travelers, rather to transform the bay into what officials are referring to as a "mini Subic".

Like Subic Bay, north of Manila and once the site of the United States' largest military facility in the Asia-Pacific, Oyster Bay's cove includes a deep natural harbor capable of hosting large vessels, including warships. Unlike Subic, Oyster Bay opens directly on the South China Sea, strategically situated 150 kilometers from hotly contested and potentially hydrocarbon-rich maritime territories in the Spratly Islands.

President Benigno Aquino's government has allocated around 500 million pesos (US$12 million) to Oyster Bay's initial groundwork, with piers, dry docks and ship repair yards also on the drawing boards. Construction of the naval port, part of the Armed Forces of the Philippines' broad modernization drive, is slated for completion in 2016, coinciding with the end of Aquino's six-year term.

As maritime tensions have flared with China, Aquino has given his backing to a US$1.8 billion military modernization program, including plans to bolster the country's external defense capabilities through new air and naval bases at Subic. At the same time, the government is hammering out a bilateral strategic deal with Washington that if completed would allow the US to deploy on a rotational basis a larger number of security forces on Philippine soil, including at the new facility at Oyster Bay. Washington has so far committed limited finance to the project from the US Defense Department's contingency funds.

[Oldfolkie]

1. Access road from Luzon to Palawan???

Am I misreading this? A road across 1000s of miles of ocean? Anybody looked at a map?