The United States has reached a 10-year agreement with the Philippines that will give American warships, planes and troops greater access to bases in the archipelago, American officials said Sunday.
The deal, which will be the centerpiece of President Obama’s visit to the Philippines on Monday, returns the United States to a visible presence in the country for the first time since the American military gave up its sprawling naval and air bases, including one at Subic Bay, in 1992.
The accord will also give the United States more flexibility to project its military assets in a region that has become increasingly tense, with China and its neighbors, including the Philippines, squabbling over territorial claims in the East and South China Seas.
Still, administration officials said the deal was not intended to contain China.
“We’re not doing this because of China,” said Evan Medeiros, senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council. “We’re doing this because we have a longstanding alliance partner.”
The American military presence in the Philippines was a frequent source of tension between the countries, who are treaty allies. But the rapid response of American ships and planes after Typhoon Haiyan, amid a more chaotic Philippine response, has increased popular support for allowing the United States military to have more access.
“We have a long history as an alliance, but also a complex history,” said Benjamin J. Rhodes, a deputy national security adviser. “One event that gave momentum was the typhoon response.”
The scope and timing of the agreement were still to be determined through further consultations, Mr. Medeiros said. He did not rule out the use of the Subic Bay site, which was one of the largest American bases overseas and a symbol of the American presence in the Philippines.
Mr. Medeiros emphasized that the deal would not open the door to the re-establishment of American bases in the Philippines. Even so, given the political situation, it required eight months of negotiations.
