US Pax Silica hub plan hits Philippine sovereignty wall: ‘no special arrangement’
Manila pushes back against reports that a US-backed AI industrial hub will come under US laws and diplomatic protections
Analysts say the dispute points to a broader challenge: whether the Philippines can offer investors enough certainty while overcoming the infrastructure, bureaucratic and geopolitical hurdles that have long hindered foreign investment.
During a visit to the proposed site on May 15, Joshua Bingcang, president and chief executive of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, told local media that US officials had requested that the zone be placed under US jurisdiction, “but we did not agree to that”.
The 1,620-hectare (4,000-acre) industrial hub in New Clark City, 100km (60 miles) north of Manila, is part of the wider Luzon Economic Corridor. The connectivity project by the US, Japan and the Philippines across four cities on the island is projected to generate US$100 billion for the local economy.
Bingcang further confirmed that “no special arrangement” would be accorded to the US, in response to a Wall Street Journal report on April 17 that claimed the hub would be covered under diplomatic protections.