BY MANUEL MOGATO AND ROSEMARIE FRANCISCO
(Reuters) - An agreement on U.S.-Philippine defence cooperation, expected to be signed this month during a visit by President Barack Obama, will be a clear sign of a U.S. "rebalance" to Asia despite U.S. preoccupations elsewhere, the Philippines' top diplomat said.
The deal will enable the sharing of Philippine bases, an increase in the rotation through the Philippines of U.S. ships, aircraft and troops, and will reassure U.S. allies of support against a rising China.
"There is full resolve on the part of the U.S. to fulfil their commitments on this Asia rebalancing, not only in terms of defensive security but also in terms of enhancing economic cooperation," Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario told Reuters in an interview late on Monday.
"This enhanced defence cooperation is a clear manifestation of that," he said, days before the eighth and final round of talks on the pact between the old allies.
"The situation in the Middle East, the situation in Ukraine - this has been of some distraction in terms of their focus on doing this. But I believe that the resolve is very strong in terms of fulfilling their rebalance to Asia."
The deal will boost the Philippines' surveillance capabilities in the disputed South China Sea, del Rosario said, as it strives to keep in check an increasingly assertive China.
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