The entry of American forces in joint operations in the south shows that the Philippines is no longer alone in fighting militants in the area, President Gloria Arroyo said here yesterday.

"We have been fighting for a long time. We were alone in our fight against the Abu Sayyaf," Arroyo said, referring to the kidnapping group that is still holding two Americans and a Filipina in the southern island of Basilan.

"Now, we have allies in our fight because there is a global war against terrorism," Arroyo said in her weekly radio show.

Arroyo also defended her decision to allow American forces to engage in joint operations with Philippine troops against the Abu Sayyaf. "We want to destroy the Abu Sayyaf. We want to have the means to carry this out," she said.

Arroyo's comments came as the regional military chief in the southern Philippines, Lieutenant General Roy Cimatu, said that troops hunting for the hostages had recently sighted the Americans but had been unable to rescue them.

Cimatu said the Abu Sayyaf were very mobile, refusing to even engage pursuing troops, thus making it difficult to pin-point their location to rescue the hostages.

The U.S. soldiers have met with their Philippine counterparts in Basilan, southern Philippines, a regional army spokesman said.

"Five U.S. soldiers flew to Basilan by Philippine Air Force UH-1H chopper to meet Filipino Army commanders and logistics officers," said Major Noel Detoyato in a news conference.

The five soldiers are part of the 29 military experts who arrived in Zamboanga to train Filipino troops in jungle warfare last November. They were flown in from the former U.S. Clark Air Base in Luzon, central Philippines yesterday.

"They usually go to Basilan to inspect training sites and to discuss other details of the joint RP-U.S. military training exercise to be held there," Detoyato said, explaining the U.S. presence in the war zone between Philippine government troops and the Abu Sayyaf.

The Philippine military has set up forward bases in the jungles of central Basilan, one of the three venues in the Philippine-U.S. war games, dubbed 'Freedom Eagle 2002'.

The number of American soldiers has increased since November. They were meeting local Army commanders in Basilan, about 15 nautical miles south of Zamboanga City, since early this year, to inspect training sites, said Detoyato.

The rest, some 24 U.S. troops, are confined inside Zamboanga City's southern command, occasionally meeting with senior Filipino military officials. They were not allowed to roam in downtown Zamboanga City without armed escorts.

"They can go out to buy what they need but only with armed escorts. Security is essential here," Detoyato said.

Thirteen more U.S. military experts from the Pacific Command are expected to fly to Zamboanga City today on board an MC-130 transport plane, to bring training and communication equipment.

The equipment would include communication relays to be used in the Philippine-U.S. war-games.

The equipment would be set-up inside an Army base in Malagutay village, about 10 km west of Zamboanga City and in Basilan island, about 15 nautical miles south of Zamboanga.

A total of 29 U.S. soldiers are currently at Zamboanga City's southern command. Some 100 more are arriving before the end of January, and the rest early next month. About 690 U.S. troops and 310 Filipino soldiers are taking part in the exercise.