Philippines to insist on no combat for U.S. troops against rebe

MANILA, Philippines -- The government of the Philippines will insist U.S. troops take no active role in combat during a planned offensive against Muslim rebels on a southern island, the Philippine president said Saturday.

U.S. troops would train Filipino soldiers for operations against the Abu Sayyaf on southern Jolo Island, said Ignacio Bunye, spokesman for President Gloria Macapagal.

"This will have to be within the framework of the constitution and our interpretation of that is no foreign combat troops," Bunye told The Associated Press.

The U.S.-Philippine offensive against the Muslim rebels in the Asian nation is on hold after the defense chiefs of the two countries failed to reach an agreement on the plan.

U.S. defense officials announced on Feb. 20 that they had an agreement to deploy more than 1,000 American troops in March to help rout Abu Sayyaf forces.

But on Friday, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said the details of the operation remained in question. Philippine Defense Secretary Angelo Reyes said the two countries were "groping for the exact term" to describe the joint operation.

The proposed deployment is a sensitive issue in the Philippines, a former American colony.

Bunye said Saturday that the rules of engagement during the upcoming operation "should not depart radically" from last year's six-month effort to help the Philippine fight Abu Sayyaf.

U.S. soldiers provided advice, assistance and training and were only allowed to fire in self-defense.

The offensive was credited with defeating the Abu Sayyaf's main faction and the capture or killing of key members on Basilan island. Remnants of the group -- which has been linked to al-Qaida and is on the U.S. list of foreign terrorist organizations -- have fled to nearby Jolo.

Bunye welcomed statements by Rumsfeld that the new operation will be "consistent" with the Philippine constitution and predicted that details of the offensive would be resolved.

"We're confident that with these obstacles out of the way, things will move faster," he said.