US, PH eye Luzon ‘economic security zone’
The Philippines and the United States plan to establish an industrial zone in Luzon’s western corridor “to secure inputs vital to American and global supply chains,” the US Department of State said in a statement on Thursday,
The 1,619-hectare (4,000-acre) site will be designated by the Philippines as an economic security zone (ESZ), the department said, adding that the “historic” project will be “the first of its kind.”
The ESZ will be “located in the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC),” the department said, quoting US Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg.
According to another US agency, the International Trade Administration, the LEC will stretch through the central and northern parts of Luzon and encompass Metro Manila, Batangas province, the Clark airport and business hub in Pampanga, Subic Bay in Zambales, and other “key urban and industrial zones.”
The site will be “a new model for AI-native investment acceleration hubs being developed under Pax Silica,” it added.
Pax Silica was described as a “flagship effort” to establish supply chains across the globe for artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, critical minerals and other strategic resources and technologies.
This US-led initiative together with other allied nations also links “economic activity with national security priorities,” the agency said.
PH joins Pax Silica
On Friday, Trade Undersecretary and Board of Investments managing head Ceferino Rodolfo signed a declaration committing the Philippines to Pax Silica as its 13th member nation.
Other members include Australia, Finland, India, Israel, Japan, Qatar, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.
The Department of State said Pax Silica is designed to align industrial development with economic competitiveness and security concerns across these “member economies.”
“The Philippines, a close US ally, brings to Pax Silica key capabilities and human talent in technology manufacturing, including semiconductors and electronics,” the department said.
It also noted that the country “holds significant reserves of nickel, copper, chromite, and cobalt—minerals increasingly vital to global supply chains.”
‘Allied manufacturing’
The US Embassy in Manila said the ESZ will give the host country comparative advantages and support the evolving needs of the Pax Silica network.
The Department of State said the new site will also serve as a “platform for allied manufacturing” and other “evolving needs of the allied network.”
It added that the ESZ “can leverage the Philippines’ geographic centrality in the Indo-Pacific, its young and technically skilled workforce, and its deepening alliance with the United States.”
There was no timeline given as to the construction of the ESZ. But the department said the ESZ and the wider area of Luzon’s western corridor will be transformed “into a more prosperous and interconnected region while delivering value to American investors.” —WITH A REPORT FROM PNA
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