Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 13) — The Philippines is now exposed naked to threats after being stripped of the two-decade-old Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States, Senator Panfilo "Ping" Lacson said Thursday.

There's no doubt the Philippines will survive without the VFA given the resilience of its citizens and soldiers, Lacson said. But he quickly added that the country will continue to face a number of security threats without US assistance from now on.

"[I]n the meantime, we remain exposed to terrorist threats, both domestic and foreign, not to mention the continuing security threat in the West Philippine Sea posed by China, and even the need for timely humanitarian response and assistance that the US is capable of deploying during disasters, natural or man-made," Lacson said in a statement.

Lacson said the VFA's abrogation also affects the maintenance and repair of military assets provided by the US under the Armed Forces of the Philippines' modernization program.

US President Donald Trump shrugged off the Philippines' termination of the VFA which takes effect after six months.

"I view it as, 'Thank you very much. We save a lot of money,'" Trump said in an interview in Washington. He also stressed how the US "came in and literally single-handedly" saved the Philippines from the ISIS-linked Maute group that took over Marawi City in Mindanao in 2017.

The VFA, a 1998 agreement between Manila and Washington, legally allows the entry of a large number of American troops, exempting them from passport and visa regulations so they can participate in military activities in the Philippines.

EXPLAINER: The Visiting Forces Agreement

Lawmakers and experts believe ending the VFA is as good as terminating two other major military agreements with the US — the Mutual Defense Treaty, which states that each country would come to the defense of the other in case of an attack by a foreign state, and the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, which allows the US military to maintain barracks and weapons storage structures inside five military camps in the Philippines.

Lacson said entering into similar defense treaties with other countries will take time.

"The thing is, it is not the smartest move of the President to expose ourselves naked first before looking for other options for cover," he said.

Malacañang said President Rodrigo Duterte is open to inking military pacts with other countries, depending on the benefits, but he thinks it is best for the country to rely on its own for now. Foreign Affairs Secretary Tedoro "Teddy Boy" Locsin, Jr. agrees.

"President is right. No more VFA's even [with] other countries. We stand by our own guns by buying our own with a defense budget commensurate to the threats to our sovereignty," Locsin said on Twitter Thursday.

He also urged Filipinos to "stop whining" and support the government's decision to scrap the VFA.

Earlier, Locsin pushed for a "vigorous review" of the VFA instead, saying the continuance of the agreement "is deemed to be more beneficial" for the Philippines. He highlighted benefits the Philippines has been getting from the VFA: military assistance, financial grants, and deterrence against possible attacks from other countries, among others. He said he will negotiate controversial provisions, such as the lack of travel restrictions for American troops and the authority granted to the US government to retain jurisdiction over military personnel if ever they commit crimes locally.

The Philippine Senate also passed a resolution calling for a thorough review of the VFA before deciding on its fate.

Still, Duterte pushed through with junking the VFA on Tuesday in response to the US' cancellation of Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa's US visa. The Philippine senator known to have close ties with Duterte acknowledged that the revocation of his visa may have something to do with alleged extrajudicial killings under his watch as chief of the Philippine National Police from 2016 to 2018. The Duterte administration has repeatedly criticized the US for meddling in the Philippines' local affairs.

"While admittedly, the VFA is not perfect for the Philippines as far as equitability is concerned, the timing and reasons for its abrogation are way off the mark," Lacson said.