Arya News - The Philippine government hopes the signing of the controversial deal will happen in time for the 49th ASEAN Summit from Nov 16-18, which US President Donald Trump is confirmed to attend.
MANILA – The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) is awaiting Washington’s response to the draft Pax Silica framework agreement after receiving negotiating guidance from the Office of the President, according to Malacañang.
While the signing of the controversial deal remains uncertain, the Philippine government hopes it will happen in time for the 49th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit on Nov. 16-18, which US President Donald Trump is confirmed to attend.
In a briefing on Wednesday, Palace press officer Claire Castro said the BCDA had submitted a memorandum to the Office of the President, through the Office of the Executive Secretary, prompting for the final stretch of the negotiations.
“The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) was also involved and provided guidance that the BCDA will follow in negotiating and finalizing the framework arrangement with its US counterpart,” Castro said.
“We are now waiting for the US response to the draft agreement,” she added.
According to Castro, the President was aware of the issues surrounding the proposed agreement but stressed that the document remained a draft and had yet to be finalized.
Asked whether the agreement could be signed during the upcoming Asean summit, Castro said the government would see whether the process could be expedited.
Anticipated announcement
The Philippines joined the Pax Silica initiative in April. Negotiations between Manila and Washington on the project’s governance framework are expected to conclude by November in time for the Asean leaders’ summit.
The BCDA previously said the signing of the frame agreement would be one of the big announcements on the sidelines of the summit to highlight the 80th anniversary of the Philippines-US relationship this year.
Pax Silica is a US-led coalition that seeks to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals, semiconductors, AI infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, energy and logistics.
Manila has designated a 1,620-hectare site in New Clark City, Capas, Tarlac as the proposed location of an AI and advanced manufacturing hub under the initiative.
Once fully developed, the hub could attract $40 billion to $70 billion in investments and generate 130,000 to 190,000 direct jobs, according to the BCDA estimates.
The national government and local government units could also accrue between P68 billion to P75 billion in tax revenues per year.
But BCDA president and CEO Joshua Bingcang has said these figures could take as long as 30 years to materialize.
Concerns, warnings
Neither the BCDA nor Malacañang has revealed any details about the draft framework agreement.
The national government, however, assured Filipinos that the signed final deal would contain safeguards to protect the country’s national interests, the environment and its host communities, amid concerns over foreign influence, scarcity of water resources, and possible displacement of residents and indigenous peoples.
This was after civil society groups, including scientists and farmers, criticized the Pax Silica initiative to deepen the country’s involvement in the US-China strategic rivalry, expose the Philippines to security risks, place critical minerals under foreign control, and displace local communities.
Big names, big ifs
Earlier this week, the University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies published a discussion paper warning that the initiative would not automatically translate into technological advancement for the Philippines even if it attracts global technology companies
The government has identified Apple, Nvidia, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., MediaTek, United Microelectronics Corp., Qualcomm, AMD and Broadcom Inc. as among the companies on its “wishlist” for the proposed hub.
The study said what could happen is for the hub to become a “satellite platform” for multinational companies, hosting their manufacturing operations while higher-value functions and technological expertise remain overseas.
It noted that such an arrangement could leave the Philippines largely engaged in the same semiconductor activities it has pursued for decades: generating exports and employment without substantially advancing its technological capabilities.