Philippine President Gloria Arroyo stressed anew that her country has been fighting international terrorists even before the U.S., pointing out that Philippine intelligence was engaged in that kind of war even before the September 11 terror attacks in the U.S.

"Within our own country, we have been fighting terrorism in south-western Philippines long before September 11. We've gone forward and we're achieving something close to victory in the fight against terrorism," said Arroyo in a statement from New York which reached Manila's presidential palace.

Noting that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) has further strengthened the fight against terrorism in the region, Arroyo said: "I hope the coalition that we've put together in the fight against terrorism will not drift away, now that victory is at hand."

The Philippines entered into a trilateral operation arrangements with Malaysia and Indonesia. Singapore and Thailand will soon join the group to fight terrorism in their common seas.

Meanwhile, in a meeting with Secretary of State, Colin Powell, Arroyo clarified that the Philippines was not one of those criticised by U.S. President George Bush who talked about the "axis of evil" which included North Korea, Iraq and Iran, the statement said.

"President Arroyo asked about President Bush's speech and she asked about the axis of evil. The (state) secretary noted that the president had made an important point, that there are a couple of countries where support for terrorism, pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and despotic regimes are mixed together," the presidential statement quoted State Department Spokesman, Richard Boucher, as saying.

In his State of the Union address last Tuesday, Bush said the United States could act if the "axis of evil" did not desist from developing and exporting weapons of mass destruction.

In this light, Powell and Arroyo "talked about the importance of pursuing an anti-terrorist policy", said the statement.

But Arroyo reiterated that the presence of 600 U.S. soldiers in the Philippines would not be engaged in a real battle on Basilan Island, in southern Philippines, currently a war zone between government soldiers and the Abu Sayyaf Group which is holding one Filipino and two American hostages.

"The U.S. soldiers are there (in Basilan) for training, not for combat," the presidential statement quoted Arroyo as saying.

But, at the same time, Arroyo admitted she has anticipated American troops sustaining casualties during the exercises.

In an interview by Jane Clayson of CBS Early Show, Arroyo said: "It's a risk that our soldiers have been taking for many years. It is a risk that everybody in the coalition who joined the war in Afghanistan takes."