MANILA — The United States has exempted the Philippines from its pause on global security foreign aid, the Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Monday.
Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Teresita Daza confirmed this matter, saying that the Philippine government has been informed of the “waiver issued to a portion of the US foreign military financing for the Philippines.”
According to Daza, the Philippines and US remain committed to their treaty alliance and to efforts to further strengthen defense cooperation and interoperability.
“We will continue to engage the US government on the importance of our bilateral work in supporting our shared goals and priorities,” she told reporters in a text message.
A Reuters report earlier disclosed that the Trump administration released $5.3 billion in previously frozen foreign aid, mostly for security and counternarcotics programs.
Reuters said it obtained a list of 243 further exceptions approved as of Feb. 13 totaling $5.3 billion.
The list provides the most comprehensive accounting of exempted funds since Trump ordered the aid freeze and reflects the White House’s desire to cut aid for programs that are deemed unimportant to the US’ national security. (Charie Abarca © Philippine Daily Inquirer)
