United States crucial to beat Islamic State in Philippines

Manila: The United States played a "very important role" in defeating Islamic State supporters who occupied parts of a southern Philippine city for five months, the US ambassador in Manila said on Thursday.

Ambassador Sung Kim highlighted American intelligence, urban warfare training and drones as among the factors that helped end the conflict in Marawi city on Monday, which local authorities said claimed more than 1,100 lives. "We did play a very important role in supporting the (Philippines') efforts to retake Marawi," Kim told reporters.

"We had P-3s (surveillance planes), Grey Eagles (drones) providing crucial intelligence information to the Armed Forces of the Philippines so that they would be able to carry out operations necessary to retake Marawi." He also said US forces provided "very useful technical advice," especially on urban warfare where they had more experience than Filipino troops.

The United States also provided guns, ammunition and rubber boats to the Philippine military, while committing 750 million pesos ($14.7 million) in aid to residents forced out of their homes because of the war, Kim said. He said the United States had about 100 to 200 troops based in the southern Philippines to train and advise local forces in battling Muslim extremists, but he would not elaborate on their role in Marawi.

The United States and the Philippines are long-time allies, with the nations bound by a mutual defence pact. However, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, a self- described socialist, has sought to loosen his nation's alliance with the United States in favour of closer ties with China and Russia.