US seeks expansion of military presence in Philippines

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The United States is seeking an expansion of its military presence in the Philippines under a 2014 defense pact, U.S. and Philippine officials said, one of the initiatives Vice President Kamala Harris launched Monday during her visit to America's oldest treaty ally in Asia. Harries also reaffirmed Washington's commitment to defend the Philippines under the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty in talks with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the presidential palace in Manila. The high-level assurance came a day after China's coast guard forcibly seized Chinese rocket debris that Filipino navy personnel found and were towing to…