The Department of National Defense and the Armed Forces of the Philippines must explain the shipment of 39 million gallons of fuel from Naval Station Pearl Harbor to Subic, Senator Imee Marcos said Wednesday.

“Not again! This is strike three in attempting to deprive the Filipino people of their right to know,” said Marcos, who chairs the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

Citing data from several international shipping trackers, the lawmaker said the oil cargo was loaded at Pearl Harbor in Hawaii on the US-registered tanker, Yosemite Trader, on 20 December, and it entered Philippine territory on 9 January.

She said that according to maritime tracker Marine Vessel Traffic, the Yosemite Trader had remained in its position overnight around 50 kilometers west of Subic Bay as of Wednesday morning.

Marcos expressed her disappointment over the “inexplicable silence” of both the Philippine and US governments about the shipment, which she said was fueling suspicions about the pre-positioning of military supplies in the country.

“[It] only raised suspicions about the pre-positioning of military supplies in the country amid predictions of an eventual war between China and the US over Taiwan,” she said.

She said the Mutual Defense Treaty between the Philippines and the US is “not a license to leave the Filipino people in the dark.”

“Subic is not an EDCA site, so where in Philippine territory will millions of gallons of oil be stored?” she said.

“This is not just an issue of foreign policy but of Philippine sovereignty, even environmental safety. The government better have a clear explanation for this,” she added.

The US Embassy in the Philippines has yet to comment on the shipment as of press time.

Marcos had previously called for transparency regarding the military cooperation between the US and the Philippines.

In hearings held by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations last year, Marcos exposed the US’ request to house Afghan refugees in the Philippines and advisory lapses concerning the multiple landings of  C-17 Globemasters of the US Air Force in the country’s domestic and international airports.