Posted to the People & Events section of the Visayan Daily Star (Jul 22): US hospital ship arrives in Capiz for humanitarian mission
The hospital ship USNS Mercy arrived in Roxas City, Capiz Saturday for the first half of the Pacific Partnership 2015, the largest annual multilateral humanitarian assistance and disaster relief preparedness mission conducted in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region.
Pacific Partnership provides real-world medical care to thousands of patients, veterinary services, and critical infrastructure development to host nations through multiple engineering projects, while training for crisis conditions, a press release from the US Embassy said.
The medical staff aboard Mercy will perform surgical procedures, host community health engagements, and provide direct care in seven locations throughout Capiz. PP15 personnel will also work and train side-by-side with the community on civic service events, safety topics, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, water search and rescue, veterinarian care, and community outreach projects.
The crew will also host partnership events such as a multilateral leadership forum on gender and development, partnered training with barangay health workers, biomedical repair exchanges, and a disaster risk reduction forum intended to enhance international response to natural disasters.
The PP15 participants on the ship and ground include personnel from the United States, Australia, South Korea, Malaysia, Japan, and New Zealand. The hospital ship arrived with more than 900 personnel, including volunteers from non-government organizations, the press release said.
Mercy will depart Roxas City August 4, and transit to Subic Bay to continue its mission in the Philippines, from Aug. 5-14. Capt. Christopher Engdahl, Pacific Partnership 2015 mission commander, said “preparing for natural disasters before they happen is vital to the stability of the Pacific region. PP15 allows our nations to better prepare now so that we are able to respond and seamlessly integrate during future relief efforts.”
The partnership is now on its 10 th iteration. It has provided medical care to around 270,000 patients and veterinary services to more than 38,000 animals, and provided critical infrastructure developments to host nations through the completion of more than 180 engineering projects.
For more details, those interested may log on to www.cpf.navy.mil/pacific-partnership/2015/ , or http://go.usa.gov/3GfNd , the press release added.
http://visayandailystar.com/2015/July/22/people.htm
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Why China is apprehensive about Japan's entry into West PH Sea (Part 3)
From InterAksyon (Jul 22): Why China is apprehensive about Japan's entry into West PH Sea (Part 3) by Jose Antonio A. Custodio
President Aquino in ceremonial toast with Emperor Akihito, 3 June 2015. MALACANANG FILE PHOTO
Part 1 of 3, ‘Japan in WPS: Beyond China evoking World War II atrocities’
Part 2 of 3, ‘The strength of Japan: the second type of island-nation mentality’
In 2014, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe led a Cabinet decision to lift Japan’s restrictions on the use of force overseas. This is the concept of collective self-defense which although being challenged by the political opposition is being used as a means to eventually redraw the Japanese Constitution. The collective self-defense concept contains three conditions which are as follows:
The first is in a case where a nation with close ties to Japan comes under attack and the lives, freedom, and right of Japanese nationals to pursue happiness are clearly endangered. The second condition specifies that force may be used only if there is no other effective way to protect the lives of Japanese citizens. The final condition is the limitation of the use of force to the minimally required level. These standards open up the way for Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, under certain conditions, to aid an allied nation that is under attack, even if Japan itself is not.
Since then the Japanese have ramped up not only their government to government contacts with the countries in dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea, but they are also working to become a regular and strong presence in the area. Consider that the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force has conducted two exercises with the Philippine military within the month while at the same time it is widely reported that a maritime patrol aircraft will be provided to the Philippines by Japan.
A Memorandum on Defense Cooperation and Exchanges was signed between the two countries on January 2015 which set the stage for Japanese activities with their Filipino counterparts that ranges from exercises to assistance programs. By June of 2015, the maritime agencies and navies of the two countries had undertaken two joint exercises which underlie the rapid manner in which the defense and security relationship between Tokyo and Manila is developing.
Just to put emphasis, prior to those two exercises, there was practically no activity between the two militaries. The last one between the two was in 1945, and both the Filipinos and Japanese were trying to kill each other! In fact, it can be said that Japan’s current activities in the Philippines have the potential to approach the level of the security relationship that Manila has with Washington DC.
The Japanese mindset: not a puppet of the Americans
Conventional thinking has it that the Japanese are a cog in the grand plans of the United States in the region and that Japan is a puppet of the US. That would be an oversimplification of the relationship between the two countries and disregards the fact that Japan, just like the Philippines and Vietnam, is a frontline state against China’s territorial ambitions and considers the situation a clear and present danger and a direct threat to its survival.
That situation then creates the favorable climate upon which the lessons of history and the historical experience of Japan will come to play.
Many analysts tend to view Japan’s posture as either the effect of ultranationalism or as being subordinate to Washington DC, as if the survival of Japan is only the preserve and concern of so called ultranationalists and puppets of the US. It definitely is not.
Ultranationalism or unabashed pro-Americanism will not spur the construction of aircraft carrier type ships in the JMSDF, and it would also not be the driver for Japan’s reaching out to countries in the region to establish a coordinated multinational effort to face China.
Given the experience of Japan during World War II, it is safe to assume that the destructive air and naval blockade that the United States imposed on the Home Islands during that conflict would leave an indelible mark in the minds of generations of Japanese national security policy makers and military planners.
These people are the architects responsible for building and reorienting the Japanese military through the past decades to its current state, which is now benefiting the current term of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and is allowing the Japanese government the capability to respond decisively to China’s ambitions now and in the years to come.
With that traumatic historical experience at the back of their minds, and the fact also Japan is a frontline state, it may just turn out to be more forceful than the US in asserting its agenda and interests in the region especially when it comes to facing off against China.
China’s achieving its strategic goals as becoming the dominant power in the region will not sit well with Japan as it will result in it becoming a subordinate state to Beijing. That will not be in the national interest of Japan.
Thus Japan will most likely push back against China with or without US support as it not only has the economic capability to stand up to pressure from Washington DC should the leadership there become less sympathetic to Tokyo, but it also has the military capability to do unilateral actions. Which is probably why Chinese political and military officials are very apprehensive of Japan’s entry into the West Philippine Sea.
Hence it will be in Japan’s interests that countries like the Philippines that are sympathetic to it or have common issues against China be made capable of spreading Chinese capabilities thin so as to cause Beijing to limit itself to occupying a few artificial islands and nothing anymore grander than that as a reminder of its folly of trying to take on so many opponents at once.
What China has to realize is that it has stirred up a hornet’s nest in its actions against Japan. Although China has used history by raising Japan’s atrocities during and before the Second World War as a means to drive a wedge between Tokyo and countries that had once felt the boot of Japanese imperialism, what it forgets is that in modern and contemporary history, the Japanese have never lost a war against the Chinese.
China cannot claim to have won the war against Japan during World War II when it was ultimately Russian forces that destroyed the Japanese Kwantung Army in China. That fact provides a very strong psychological boost for the Japanese against the Chinese.
Contrast that with the defeatism and feeling of inferiority so prevalent among many Filipinos when it comes to dealing with China as a regional power.
What now Philippines?
Although it is an oft repeated statement that each country is guided by its own national interests, the question that needs to be asked is if the Philippines truly understands the undercurrents that shape Japanese strategic perceptions and objectives.
Does Manila really understand how far the Japanese will go to defend their interests and that throughout history the Japanese - when they feel besieged - have the ability to strike out without warning against an enemy?
Consider that in the span of a few decades, Japan has carefully built up its power projection capabilities and modified its security outlook to engage and defeat threats way before they reach Japanese shores. That in a span of a few years, from a strict assistance program limited to aid to the Philippine Coast Guard and others of a civilian nature, Japan is now emerging as a potential provider of military assistance to Manila.
The Philippines has to realize that it is not dealing with a dithering easily distracted ally like the United States of America, but a country that has a suppressed martial tradition that may just reappear due to China’s rapacious territorial ambitions.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114626/why-china-is-apprehensive-about-japans-entry-into-west-ph-sea-part-3-of-3
President Aquino in ceremonial toast with Emperor Akihito, 3 June 2015. MALACANANG FILE PHOTO
Part 1 of 3, ‘Japan in WPS: Beyond China evoking World War II atrocities’
Part 2 of 3, ‘The strength of Japan: the second type of island-nation mentality’
In 2014, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe led a Cabinet decision to lift Japan’s restrictions on the use of force overseas. This is the concept of collective self-defense which although being challenged by the political opposition is being used as a means to eventually redraw the Japanese Constitution. The collective self-defense concept contains three conditions which are as follows:
The first is in a case where a nation with close ties to Japan comes under attack and the lives, freedom, and right of Japanese nationals to pursue happiness are clearly endangered. The second condition specifies that force may be used only if there is no other effective way to protect the lives of Japanese citizens. The final condition is the limitation of the use of force to the minimally required level. These standards open up the way for Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, under certain conditions, to aid an allied nation that is under attack, even if Japan itself is not.
Since then the Japanese have ramped up not only their government to government contacts with the countries in dispute with China in the West Philippine Sea, but they are also working to become a regular and strong presence in the area. Consider that the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force has conducted two exercises with the Philippine military within the month while at the same time it is widely reported that a maritime patrol aircraft will be provided to the Philippines by Japan.
A Memorandum on Defense Cooperation and Exchanges was signed between the two countries on January 2015 which set the stage for Japanese activities with their Filipino counterparts that ranges from exercises to assistance programs. By June of 2015, the maritime agencies and navies of the two countries had undertaken two joint exercises which underlie the rapid manner in which the defense and security relationship between Tokyo and Manila is developing.
Just to put emphasis, prior to those two exercises, there was practically no activity between the two militaries. The last one between the two was in 1945, and both the Filipinos and Japanese were trying to kill each other! In fact, it can be said that Japan’s current activities in the Philippines have the potential to approach the level of the security relationship that Manila has with Washington DC.
The Japanese mindset: not a puppet of the Americans
Conventional thinking has it that the Japanese are a cog in the grand plans of the United States in the region and that Japan is a puppet of the US. That would be an oversimplification of the relationship between the two countries and disregards the fact that Japan, just like the Philippines and Vietnam, is a frontline state against China’s territorial ambitions and considers the situation a clear and present danger and a direct threat to its survival.
That situation then creates the favorable climate upon which the lessons of history and the historical experience of Japan will come to play.
Many analysts tend to view Japan’s posture as either the effect of ultranationalism or as being subordinate to Washington DC, as if the survival of Japan is only the preserve and concern of so called ultranationalists and puppets of the US. It definitely is not.
Ultranationalism or unabashed pro-Americanism will not spur the construction of aircraft carrier type ships in the JMSDF, and it would also not be the driver for Japan’s reaching out to countries in the region to establish a coordinated multinational effort to face China.
Given the experience of Japan during World War II, it is safe to assume that the destructive air and naval blockade that the United States imposed on the Home Islands during that conflict would leave an indelible mark in the minds of generations of Japanese national security policy makers and military planners.
These people are the architects responsible for building and reorienting the Japanese military through the past decades to its current state, which is now benefiting the current term of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and is allowing the Japanese government the capability to respond decisively to China’s ambitions now and in the years to come.
With that traumatic historical experience at the back of their minds, and the fact also Japan is a frontline state, it may just turn out to be more forceful than the US in asserting its agenda and interests in the region especially when it comes to facing off against China.
China’s achieving its strategic goals as becoming the dominant power in the region will not sit well with Japan as it will result in it becoming a subordinate state to Beijing. That will not be in the national interest of Japan.
Thus Japan will most likely push back against China with or without US support as it not only has the economic capability to stand up to pressure from Washington DC should the leadership there become less sympathetic to Tokyo, but it also has the military capability to do unilateral actions. Which is probably why Chinese political and military officials are very apprehensive of Japan’s entry into the West Philippine Sea.
Hence it will be in Japan’s interests that countries like the Philippines that are sympathetic to it or have common issues against China be made capable of spreading Chinese capabilities thin so as to cause Beijing to limit itself to occupying a few artificial islands and nothing anymore grander than that as a reminder of its folly of trying to take on so many opponents at once.
What China has to realize is that it has stirred up a hornet’s nest in its actions against Japan. Although China has used history by raising Japan’s atrocities during and before the Second World War as a means to drive a wedge between Tokyo and countries that had once felt the boot of Japanese imperialism, what it forgets is that in modern and contemporary history, the Japanese have never lost a war against the Chinese.
China cannot claim to have won the war against Japan during World War II when it was ultimately Russian forces that destroyed the Japanese Kwantung Army in China. That fact provides a very strong psychological boost for the Japanese against the Chinese.
Contrast that with the defeatism and feeling of inferiority so prevalent among many Filipinos when it comes to dealing with China as a regional power.
What now Philippines?
Although it is an oft repeated statement that each country is guided by its own national interests, the question that needs to be asked is if the Philippines truly understands the undercurrents that shape Japanese strategic perceptions and objectives.
Does Manila really understand how far the Japanese will go to defend their interests and that throughout history the Japanese - when they feel besieged - have the ability to strike out without warning against an enemy?
Consider that in the span of a few decades, Japan has carefully built up its power projection capabilities and modified its security outlook to engage and defeat threats way before they reach Japanese shores. That in a span of a few years, from a strict assistance program limited to aid to the Philippine Coast Guard and others of a civilian nature, Japan is now emerging as a potential provider of military assistance to Manila.
The Philippines has to realize that it is not dealing with a dithering easily distracted ally like the United States of America, but a country that has a suppressed martial tradition that may just reappear due to China’s rapacious territorial ambitions.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114626/why-china-is-apprehensive-about-japans-entry-into-west-ph-sea-part-3-of-3
The strength of Japan: the second type of island-nation mentality (Part 2)
From InterAksyon (Jul 19): The strength of Japan: the second type of island-nation mentality (Part 2) by Jose Antonio A. Custodio
Japan Self-Defense Force ground troops. AFP FILE PHOTO
There are two types of island nations. The first is the type that, because of its isolation brought about by the seas surrounding it, tends to look inward and have little or no comprehension of external developments. The second is the type that seeks to go beyond the seas that confine it and in the process build large empires whether by conquest or economic activity.
Japan is the latter type of island nation and is very similar to the United Kingdom in that regard. The Japanese view the sea lanes as fundamental for their national survival as commerce, vital to the viability of their economic life, and depend on its unhampered flow into and out of Japan. No ifs or buts about that.
Hence, China as a nation located in the Asian mainland may have difficulty in understanding that very fundamental aspect of Japan’s existence as a powerful maritime nation state, which had already caused it to go to war 70 years ago. Simply put, one cannot mess around with Japan’s contact with the outside world and get away with it.
While postwar Japan strove to learn the lessons of the Second World War by embracing peaceful economic development, it also created a powerful naval capability that would check the Soviet Union’s submarine force during the Cold War - this, in order to avoid a repeat of its disastrous experience when the United States strangled the Japanese through prewar economic sanctions and the wartime naval and submarine blockade.
In fact, former officers of the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy joined the newly established Japan Self Defense Force ensuring that lessons learned during the war years would remain codified in the new military organization. One such individual was Minoru Genda, the officer who planned the air assault on Pearl Harbor. After the war, he joined the Japan Air Self Defense Force and became its commanding general from 1959-1962.
On the other hand, these very lessons of the Second World War seem to have been forgotten by China in its haste to establish suzerainty over this part of the world; and it seems to have not properly assessed the Japanese response to what it is doing in the West Philippine Sea.
Many observers and analysts fail to realize that Japan is a nation composed of several large island groups that has a deep and historical appreciation of the maritime domain and its role in the country’s survival and viability as a powerful and influential state. This has been a recurring theme in Japan’s history from the 19th Century onwards, and felt very keenly by the Japanese during the Second World War. Just like Great Britain which 19th Century Japan looked up to as a model worth emulating, the Japanese first attempted to establish a traditional empire that ended with the disaster of the Second World War; and, following that, an economic empire: both attempts required a strong maritime tradition and capability to protect and advance their interests.
However, by the tailend of the Cold War, Japan could already see the handwriting on the wall regarding United States presence in the Asia Pacific, and since the late 1980s it began modernizing its power projection capabilities.
The first indicator of that was the appearance of a new type of vessel in the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force, the LST 4001 Osumi in 1995. Although the Japanese made great effort to explain the ship as a Landing Ship, it somewhat resembled a small aircraft carrier with its flat deck and island superstructure. Japan built three vessels of this type.
In the early 1990s, the Japanese military was already participating in peacekeeping operations in Cambodia and this, too, was another indicator of Japan’s increasing shift toward projection of forces as such activities familiarized Japan with operations outside of the Home Islands and in the logistic needs for such.
The last time the Japanese had projected their forces was in 1945 and there was a lot of catching up to do.
By the 21st Century, Japanese combat aircraft were being deployed further and further away in exercises with their American ally in the Pacific region. Then in 2006, the Japan began the construction of DDH 181 Hyuga.
Hyuga on the day of its launch was the biggest warship in the JMSDF; although it looked like an aircraft carrier and approaching the size of a World War 2 era fleet carrier, it was designated as a destroyer. This then made it the largest destroyer in the world at 646 feet in length, and Japan built two and named the later one DDH 182 Ise.
The names Hyuga and Ise were once carried by two battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy that entered service in World War I and saw extensive combat in World War II and were both modified as hybrid battleship/aircraft carriers.
DDH181 and DDH 182, however, both lost the distinction of being the largest “destroyers” afloat when Japan commissioned the DDH 183 Izumo in 2015 that, again, despite it being designated as such, had all the appearances of an aircraft carrier. At 814 feet in length, it is also as large or if not larger than many World War II-era fleet carriers, thus making it theoretically possible to operate fixed-wing aircraft if modified with a ski jump and with the flight deck reinforced.
Although Japan is part of the consortium that is developing the Lockheed F-35 Lighting II and has agreed to order 42 of the F-35A variant, should it opt in the future for the B variant - which is the Vertical and Short Take Off model - then it will really raise suspicions about the true intention of all these flat decks in service with the JMSDF.
What the reefs represent for Japan
When China declared an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) that swallowed up the East China Sea, Japan was one of the countries that vigorously protested. Each time Beijing did a provocative action, the Japanese did not flinch from facing off with them.
Today, Chinese incursions into Japanese airspace have so become a regular occurrence that the Japan Air Self Defense Force maintains a round-the-clock alert status in areas the Chinese aircraft regularly intrude into. China - no longer Russia - is effectively the number one violator of Japan’s airspace.
Now that China has undertaken an artificial island construction spree at the West Philippine Sea -
something only the most naïve or the most treasonous will view as anything but military outposts designed to curtail and control movement into the area and to project Chinese military power - the impact of this to Japan is not something that is hard to guess, as all these lie astride Japanese shipping.
Of course, the Japanese are aware of the Chinese First and Second Island Chain strategy, but it is doubtful that they will wait for that to transpire before they take any action.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114445/the-strength-of-japan-the-second-type-of-island-nation-mentality-part-2-of-3
Japan Self-Defense Force ground troops. AFP FILE PHOTO
There are two types of island nations. The first is the type that, because of its isolation brought about by the seas surrounding it, tends to look inward and have little or no comprehension of external developments. The second is the type that seeks to go beyond the seas that confine it and in the process build large empires whether by conquest or economic activity.
Japan is the latter type of island nation and is very similar to the United Kingdom in that regard. The Japanese view the sea lanes as fundamental for their national survival as commerce, vital to the viability of their economic life, and depend on its unhampered flow into and out of Japan. No ifs or buts about that.
Hence, China as a nation located in the Asian mainland may have difficulty in understanding that very fundamental aspect of Japan’s existence as a powerful maritime nation state, which had already caused it to go to war 70 years ago. Simply put, one cannot mess around with Japan’s contact with the outside world and get away with it.
While postwar Japan strove to learn the lessons of the Second World War by embracing peaceful economic development, it also created a powerful naval capability that would check the Soviet Union’s submarine force during the Cold War - this, in order to avoid a repeat of its disastrous experience when the United States strangled the Japanese through prewar economic sanctions and the wartime naval and submarine blockade.
In fact, former officers of the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy joined the newly established Japan Self Defense Force ensuring that lessons learned during the war years would remain codified in the new military organization. One such individual was Minoru Genda, the officer who planned the air assault on Pearl Harbor. After the war, he joined the Japan Air Self Defense Force and became its commanding general from 1959-1962.
On the other hand, these very lessons of the Second World War seem to have been forgotten by China in its haste to establish suzerainty over this part of the world; and it seems to have not properly assessed the Japanese response to what it is doing in the West Philippine Sea.
Many observers and analysts fail to realize that Japan is a nation composed of several large island groups that has a deep and historical appreciation of the maritime domain and its role in the country’s survival and viability as a powerful and influential state. This has been a recurring theme in Japan’s history from the 19th Century onwards, and felt very keenly by the Japanese during the Second World War. Just like Great Britain which 19th Century Japan looked up to as a model worth emulating, the Japanese first attempted to establish a traditional empire that ended with the disaster of the Second World War; and, following that, an economic empire: both attempts required a strong maritime tradition and capability to protect and advance their interests.
However, by the tailend of the Cold War, Japan could already see the handwriting on the wall regarding United States presence in the Asia Pacific, and since the late 1980s it began modernizing its power projection capabilities.
The first indicator of that was the appearance of a new type of vessel in the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force, the LST 4001 Osumi in 1995. Although the Japanese made great effort to explain the ship as a Landing Ship, it somewhat resembled a small aircraft carrier with its flat deck and island superstructure. Japan built three vessels of this type.
In the early 1990s, the Japanese military was already participating in peacekeeping operations in Cambodia and this, too, was another indicator of Japan’s increasing shift toward projection of forces as such activities familiarized Japan with operations outside of the Home Islands and in the logistic needs for such.
The last time the Japanese had projected their forces was in 1945 and there was a lot of catching up to do.
By the 21st Century, Japanese combat aircraft were being deployed further and further away in exercises with their American ally in the Pacific region. Then in 2006, the Japan began the construction of DDH 181 Hyuga.
Hyuga on the day of its launch was the biggest warship in the JMSDF; although it looked like an aircraft carrier and approaching the size of a World War 2 era fleet carrier, it was designated as a destroyer. This then made it the largest destroyer in the world at 646 feet in length, and Japan built two and named the later one DDH 182 Ise.
The names Hyuga and Ise were once carried by two battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy that entered service in World War I and saw extensive combat in World War II and were both modified as hybrid battleship/aircraft carriers.
DDH181 and DDH 182, however, both lost the distinction of being the largest “destroyers” afloat when Japan commissioned the DDH 183 Izumo in 2015 that, again, despite it being designated as such, had all the appearances of an aircraft carrier. At 814 feet in length, it is also as large or if not larger than many World War II-era fleet carriers, thus making it theoretically possible to operate fixed-wing aircraft if modified with a ski jump and with the flight deck reinforced.
Although Japan is part of the consortium that is developing the Lockheed F-35 Lighting II and has agreed to order 42 of the F-35A variant, should it opt in the future for the B variant - which is the Vertical and Short Take Off model - then it will really raise suspicions about the true intention of all these flat decks in service with the JMSDF.
What the reefs represent for Japan
When China declared an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) that swallowed up the East China Sea, Japan was one of the countries that vigorously protested. Each time Beijing did a provocative action, the Japanese did not flinch from facing off with them.
Today, Chinese incursions into Japanese airspace have so become a regular occurrence that the Japan Air Self Defense Force maintains a round-the-clock alert status in areas the Chinese aircraft regularly intrude into. China - no longer Russia - is effectively the number one violator of Japan’s airspace.
Now that China has undertaken an artificial island construction spree at the West Philippine Sea -
something only the most naïve or the most treasonous will view as anything but military outposts designed to curtail and control movement into the area and to project Chinese military power - the impact of this to Japan is not something that is hard to guess, as all these lie astride Japanese shipping.
Of course, the Japanese are aware of the Chinese First and Second Island Chain strategy, but it is doubtful that they will wait for that to transpire before they take any action.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114445/the-strength-of-japan-the-second-type-of-island-nation-mentality-part-2-of-3
Japan in WPS: Beyond China evoking World War II atrocities (Part 1)
From InterAksyon (Jul 16): Japan in WPS: Beyond China evoking World War II atrocities (Part 1) by Jose Antonio A. Custodio
Japan’s entry into the West Philippine Sea has been fully supported by the Philippines and vigorously protested by China. This action by Tokyo has revived memories of the Second World War as Beijing has been using the records of Japan’s transgressions and atrocities during the previous global conflict as propaganda to counter Japanese security initiatives in the region.
The Philippines, which ironically had been a country occupied by Imperial Japan, is now rapidly finding itself marching in step with what may turn into its strongest ally after the United States should anything formally be drawn up between Manila and Tokyo. It has also used the World War II past but not against the Japanese but against Beijing.
Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III had stated that China has been acting very much in the same manner that Germany had been treating its neighbors in the 1930s leading to the outbreak of war in Europe. Oversensitive Chinese took exception to this declaration by the Philippine president overlooking the fact that what was compared was the similarity in the bullying tactics and unilateral actions of Germany with what China has been doing for the past decade and it was never alleged or claimed that the Chinese ruling elite were a bunch of murderous genocidal maniacs which the Nazis were.
Despite of course the fact that Beijing is systematically destroying Tibetan culture and Maoist tenets do have a tinge of genocidal tendencies itself as seen in the massive deaths caused by the Great Leap Forward in the 1950s and the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s.
The thing is, while everyone is harking back to the Second World War to warn about what either China and Japan are doing, one of the most essential factors that led to the outbreak of war here in Asia in 1941 seems to be overlooked especially by the Chinese.
China and Japan: It’s personal
For centuries, both China and Japan have been at each other’s throats.
In many instances the Korean Peninsula had been the real estate where the two squared off against each other.
However following the reclusive Tokugawa Shogunate, the newly modernized Japan fought and pulverized the armies of the decaying Manchu Dynasty and won the 1895 Sino Japanese War. The next decades would see Japan carve out territory after territory at the expense of China.
In 1910, Japan annexed Korea and in the next decade firmly established itself in Manchuria. This made war inevitable and it broke out after being instigated by Japan in 1937.
The brutality of that war has left a lasting impression on the Chinese and atrocities like the Nanking Massacre, the Burn All-Kill All-Loot All anti-guerrilla punitive operations by the Japanese and the notorious Unit 731 chemical and biological weapon experiments have never been forgotten.
Following the war, Japan really did drag its feet in acknowledging and apologizing for its atrocities and it is indeed true that for every effort by Japan to extend remorse for its wartime past, there was an attempt within the country to justify the reasons why Japan went to war.
That obviously did not sit well with many Asian countries, most especially the Chinese. Those are the reasons why it had become personal between the two countries.
The trigger of World War II in Asia
As mentioned, Japan had been deeply involved in China following the undeclared Sino-Japanese War in 1937 and even much earlier than that, and the bulk of the Imperial Japanese Army was deployed in operations against the Chinese.
The Imperial Japanese Navy was also involved in the war with its warships and aircraft effectively conducting a blockade of China by seizing strategic ports and locations along the coast. Although the war was localized it was sending a chilling effect on the rest of the region and the Europeans and Americans took steps to ensure that its interests in Shanghai and Hong Kong were safe from any spillover from the conflict.
In June 1940 when the Germans vanquished the French, the Japanese sensed that France’s colonial possessions were ripe for the picking. After browbeating the Vichy French authorities to accept Japanese military presence in Indochina, Tokyo then began establishing bases in that French colony. Simultaneously, the Japanese entered into the notorious Tripartite Agreement with Rome and Berlin and became a member of the Axis alliance. These two actions were the straws that practically broke the camel’s back for Washington and London. Economic sanctions were immediately called for by the Americans against the Japanese. The British together with the Western European governments in exile supported that US initiative and a crippling economic blockade of strategic materials such as rubber, metals, and most especially of oil was imposed on the Japanese.
As Japan had no such resources, this embargo would have a devastating effect on Tokyo’s national interests. Japan’s war leaders were now in a dilemma. Should they buckle under the pressure of the Americans and Europeans and cease their operations in China and lose face in the process, or should they continue with the war and run out of the means to conduct it?
For quite some time, the Japanese high command was undergoing a debate as to which front to expand next as there were those who favored concentrating against the Soviet Union while others cast covetous eyes on the rich possessions of the colonial powers in Southeast Asia. Following a series of defeats against the Soviet Union at Mongolia in the late 1930s, and the pressures and demands of the war in China, the focus shifted towards the colonies at Southeast Asia. Now with the US led embargo in full effect against Japan, the capacity for the Japanese military to conduct operations was measured in several months before oil and other essentials run out. The plan then was to strike southwards and conquer the rich colonies there. The trigger then that started the war for Japan was the reality of being starved to submission by the economic embargo.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114293/japan-in-wps-beyond-china-evoking-world-war-ii-atrocities-part-1-of-3
Japan’s entry into the West Philippine Sea has been fully supported by the Philippines and vigorously protested by China. This action by Tokyo has revived memories of the Second World War as Beijing has been using the records of Japan’s transgressions and atrocities during the previous global conflict as propaganda to counter Japanese security initiatives in the region.
The Philippines, which ironically had been a country occupied by Imperial Japan, is now rapidly finding itself marching in step with what may turn into its strongest ally after the United States should anything formally be drawn up between Manila and Tokyo. It has also used the World War II past but not against the Japanese but against Beijing.
Philippine President Benigno S. Aquino III had stated that China has been acting very much in the same manner that Germany had been treating its neighbors in the 1930s leading to the outbreak of war in Europe. Oversensitive Chinese took exception to this declaration by the Philippine president overlooking the fact that what was compared was the similarity in the bullying tactics and unilateral actions of Germany with what China has been doing for the past decade and it was never alleged or claimed that the Chinese ruling elite were a bunch of murderous genocidal maniacs which the Nazis were.
Despite of course the fact that Beijing is systematically destroying Tibetan culture and Maoist tenets do have a tinge of genocidal tendencies itself as seen in the massive deaths caused by the Great Leap Forward in the 1950s and the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s.
The thing is, while everyone is harking back to the Second World War to warn about what either China and Japan are doing, one of the most essential factors that led to the outbreak of war here in Asia in 1941 seems to be overlooked especially by the Chinese.
China and Japan: It’s personal
For centuries, both China and Japan have been at each other’s throats.
In many instances the Korean Peninsula had been the real estate where the two squared off against each other.
However following the reclusive Tokugawa Shogunate, the newly modernized Japan fought and pulverized the armies of the decaying Manchu Dynasty and won the 1895 Sino Japanese War. The next decades would see Japan carve out territory after territory at the expense of China.
In 1910, Japan annexed Korea and in the next decade firmly established itself in Manchuria. This made war inevitable and it broke out after being instigated by Japan in 1937.
The brutality of that war has left a lasting impression on the Chinese and atrocities like the Nanking Massacre, the Burn All-Kill All-Loot All anti-guerrilla punitive operations by the Japanese and the notorious Unit 731 chemical and biological weapon experiments have never been forgotten.
Following the war, Japan really did drag its feet in acknowledging and apologizing for its atrocities and it is indeed true that for every effort by Japan to extend remorse for its wartime past, there was an attempt within the country to justify the reasons why Japan went to war.
That obviously did not sit well with many Asian countries, most especially the Chinese. Those are the reasons why it had become personal between the two countries.
The trigger of World War II in Asia
As mentioned, Japan had been deeply involved in China following the undeclared Sino-Japanese War in 1937 and even much earlier than that, and the bulk of the Imperial Japanese Army was deployed in operations against the Chinese.
The Imperial Japanese Navy was also involved in the war with its warships and aircraft effectively conducting a blockade of China by seizing strategic ports and locations along the coast. Although the war was localized it was sending a chilling effect on the rest of the region and the Europeans and Americans took steps to ensure that its interests in Shanghai and Hong Kong were safe from any spillover from the conflict.
In June 1940 when the Germans vanquished the French, the Japanese sensed that France’s colonial possessions were ripe for the picking. After browbeating the Vichy French authorities to accept Japanese military presence in Indochina, Tokyo then began establishing bases in that French colony. Simultaneously, the Japanese entered into the notorious Tripartite Agreement with Rome and Berlin and became a member of the Axis alliance. These two actions were the straws that practically broke the camel’s back for Washington and London. Economic sanctions were immediately called for by the Americans against the Japanese. The British together with the Western European governments in exile supported that US initiative and a crippling economic blockade of strategic materials such as rubber, metals, and most especially of oil was imposed on the Japanese.
As Japan had no such resources, this embargo would have a devastating effect on Tokyo’s national interests. Japan’s war leaders were now in a dilemma. Should they buckle under the pressure of the Americans and Europeans and cease their operations in China and lose face in the process, or should they continue with the war and run out of the means to conduct it?
For quite some time, the Japanese high command was undergoing a debate as to which front to expand next as there were those who favored concentrating against the Soviet Union while others cast covetous eyes on the rich possessions of the colonial powers in Southeast Asia. Following a series of defeats against the Soviet Union at Mongolia in the late 1930s, and the pressures and demands of the war in China, the focus shifted towards the colonies at Southeast Asia. Now with the US led embargo in full effect against Japan, the capacity for the Japanese military to conduct operations was measured in several months before oil and other essentials run out. The plan then was to strike southwards and conquer the rich colonies there. The trigger then that started the war for Japan was the reality of being starved to submission by the economic embargo.
[Editor's note: Jose Antonio A. Custodio is a security and defense consultant and was a technical adviser for a US defense company working for the US Pacific Command. He also specializes in military history and has post-graduate studies in history from the University of the Philippines. He also teaches history and political science at several universities in Metro Manila.]
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114293/japan-in-wps-beyond-china-evoking-world-war-ii-atrocities-part-1-of-3
Presence of US troops in Subic seen as deterrent against China
From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Jan 22): Presence of US troops in Subic seen as deterrent against China
A WALL poster at the Subic Bay International Airport, formerly known as US Air Station, shows an aerial view of the site where combat planes of the Philippine Air Force will be stationed as the country readies a section of this free port in Zambales as a military base. PHOTO REPRODUCTION BY ALLAN MACATUNO
BUILT BY the Americans during the Korean War in the 1950s, the former United States naval air station in Cubi Point provided vital support to the US Seventh Fleet when the Subic naval base operated.
At that time, the air station was also operated as a repair and maintenance facility for about 400 carrier-based aircraft of the US Seventh Fleet for years until the Mt. Pinatubo eruption buried the station under tons of ash on June 15, 1991.
It only took less than a month for US Navy troops to restore the facility’s normal operations but three months later, the Philippine Senate voted to require the US military to withdraw all of its facilities in the country.
After the American troops left the country in 1992, their air station at Subic was rehabilitated under former Sen. Richard Gordon, who served as the first chair of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).
It was called Cubi Point International Airport during that transition, but eventually renamed as Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA).
More than two decades later, the Philippines will rehabilitate this facility to house a squadron of combat planes of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) as the country readies a section of this free port to become a military base.
Roberto Garcia, SBMA chair and administrator, said 12 lead-in fighter jets that the government bought from South Korea would be stationed in the SBIA.
“The PAF will rehabilitate a 13-hectare portion of the SBIA so this facility will become a mix of military and commercial airport,” Garcia said. The airport’s runway spans 2,744 meters x 45 meters.
The new PAF facility will operate at the former Federal Express (FedEx) terminal inside the SBIA.
Garcia said the government would have to fund the restoration of the portion of the SBIA that is dedicated to PAF.
“I told them (PAF officials) that they have to shoulder the expenses for the rehabilitation since our military has its modernization budget,” Garcia said.
Ports and wharves
Aside from the air station, the military is also set to use various ports and wharves as it establishes its military base inside the free port.
The Alava Pier, Juliet Pier, Bravo Wharf and Rivera Wharf will be the home ports of the Philippine Navy fleet, Garcia said.
At present, Subic Bay serves as the home port of frigates BRP Alcaraz (PF-16) and BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF-15), the recent additions to the Philippine Navy fleet.
“This free port will be a forward operating base of our military. This place is the closest area to the source of potential conflict,” Garcia said, referring to China’s incursion in the West Philippine Sea where the disputed Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc is located.
The shoal is about 222 kilometers (120 nautical miles) west of Subic Bay. It was the site of the tense stand-off between the Philippines and China in 2012.
Chinese fishermen were found by Philippine authorities to have illegally collected corals, live sharks and giant clams near the shoal. An attempt to arrest the fishermen was made but Philippine authorities were stopped by Chinese maritime surveillance ships.
Once the government establishes a military and naval base here, US troops would regularly come here for training, Garcia said.
“The US will not have a permanent base here but they will use our military facilities. US troops will train here on a rotational basis,” he said.
Garcia said about 1,000 US soldiers are expected to arrive here every six months if the Supreme Court issues a favorable ruling on the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca).
‘At risk’
The Edca, signed between the US and Philippine militaries last year, allows the US to expand its presence in the country by building its own facilities and storing its assets in selected Philippine military bases.
“The presence of US troops here is a very strong deterrent [against China],” Garcia said.
He said the country is “at risk” in terms of military defense without the help of the US. “Just imagine if there will be no Americans here. We really have to make a stand and get help from our allies,” he said.
The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) criticized the government’s move to reopen Subic as a military base and asked the Senate to investigate the lease agreement between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and SBMA on the use of several facilities at the former US naval base.
“The Senate must investigate the 15-year lease agreement between the AFP and SBMA and analyze this within the context of the Edca and the US pivot,” Bayan said in a July 19 statement
“The Filipino people must protest this circumvention of the Constitution and violation of our sovereignty,” it added.
But Garcia shrugged off Bayan’s statement, saying SBMA has to cooperate with the national government “to preserve national security.” http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706726/presence-of-us-troops-in-subic-seen-as-deterrent-against-china
A WALL poster at the Subic Bay International Airport, formerly known as US Air Station, shows an aerial view of the site where combat planes of the Philippine Air Force will be stationed as the country readies a section of this free port in Zambales as a military base. PHOTO REPRODUCTION BY ALLAN MACATUNO
BUILT BY the Americans during the Korean War in the 1950s, the former United States naval air station in Cubi Point provided vital support to the US Seventh Fleet when the Subic naval base operated.
At that time, the air station was also operated as a repair and maintenance facility for about 400 carrier-based aircraft of the US Seventh Fleet for years until the Mt. Pinatubo eruption buried the station under tons of ash on June 15, 1991.
It only took less than a month for US Navy troops to restore the facility’s normal operations but three months later, the Philippine Senate voted to require the US military to withdraw all of its facilities in the country.
After the American troops left the country in 1992, their air station at Subic was rehabilitated under former Sen. Richard Gordon, who served as the first chair of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA).
It was called Cubi Point International Airport during that transition, but eventually renamed as Subic Bay International Airport (SBIA).
More than two decades later, the Philippines will rehabilitate this facility to house a squadron of combat planes of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) as the country readies a section of this free port to become a military base.
Roberto Garcia, SBMA chair and administrator, said 12 lead-in fighter jets that the government bought from South Korea would be stationed in the SBIA.
“The PAF will rehabilitate a 13-hectare portion of the SBIA so this facility will become a mix of military and commercial airport,” Garcia said. The airport’s runway spans 2,744 meters x 45 meters.
The new PAF facility will operate at the former Federal Express (FedEx) terminal inside the SBIA.
Garcia said the government would have to fund the restoration of the portion of the SBIA that is dedicated to PAF.
“I told them (PAF officials) that they have to shoulder the expenses for the rehabilitation since our military has its modernization budget,” Garcia said.
Ports and wharves
Aside from the air station, the military is also set to use various ports and wharves as it establishes its military base inside the free port.
IN THIS 2013 photo, US military aircraft used in joint exercises with Philippine troops that year are parked at the Subic Bay International Airport. INQUIRER PHOTO
The Alava Pier, Juliet Pier, Bravo Wharf and Rivera Wharf will be the home ports of the Philippine Navy fleet, Garcia said.
At present, Subic Bay serves as the home port of frigates BRP Alcaraz (PF-16) and BRP Gregorio del Pilar (PF-15), the recent additions to the Philippine Navy fleet.
“This free port will be a forward operating base of our military. This place is the closest area to the source of potential conflict,” Garcia said, referring to China’s incursion in the West Philippine Sea where the disputed Scarborough Shoal or Bajo de Masinloc is located.
The shoal is about 222 kilometers (120 nautical miles) west of Subic Bay. It was the site of the tense stand-off between the Philippines and China in 2012.
Chinese fishermen were found by Philippine authorities to have illegally collected corals, live sharks and giant clams near the shoal. An attempt to arrest the fishermen was made but Philippine authorities were stopped by Chinese maritime surveillance ships.
Once the government establishes a military and naval base here, US troops would regularly come here for training, Garcia said.
“The US will not have a permanent base here but they will use our military facilities. US troops will train here on a rotational basis,” he said.
Garcia said about 1,000 US soldiers are expected to arrive here every six months if the Supreme Court issues a favorable ruling on the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca).
‘At risk’
The Edca, signed between the US and Philippine militaries last year, allows the US to expand its presence in the country by building its own facilities and storing its assets in selected Philippine military bases.
“The presence of US troops here is a very strong deterrent [against China],” Garcia said.
He said the country is “at risk” in terms of military defense without the help of the US. “Just imagine if there will be no Americans here. We really have to make a stand and get help from our allies,” he said.
The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) criticized the government’s move to reopen Subic as a military base and asked the Senate to investigate the lease agreement between the Armed Forces of the Philippines and SBMA on the use of several facilities at the former US naval base.
“The Senate must investigate the 15-year lease agreement between the AFP and SBMA and analyze this within the context of the Edca and the US pivot,” Bayan said in a July 19 statement
“The Filipino people must protest this circumvention of the Constitution and violation of our sovereignty,” it added.
But Garcia shrugged off Bayan’s statement, saying SBMA has to cooperate with the national government “to preserve national security.” http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706726/presence-of-us-troops-in-subic-seen-as-deterrent-against-china
Retired General wants China to take Ayungin Shoal by force
From the Digital Journal (Jul 21): Retired General wants China to take Ayungin Shoal by force
A retired Chinese General has called on Beijing to take Ayungin Shoal by force if the Philippines continues to do repair works on a dilapidated vessel anchored on the shoal and used as security station by Philippine Navy.
Major General Luo Yuan, a retired senior military officer on Tuesday warned the Philippines that continued "provocations" on the disputed West Philippine Sea (also known as South China Sea) 'will come at a price.'
A retired Chinese General has called on Beijing to take Ayungin Shoal by force if the Philippines continues to do repair works on a dilapidated vessel anchored on the shoal and used as security station by Philippine Navy.
Major General Luo Yuan, a retired senior military officer on Tuesday warned the Philippines that continued "provocations" on the disputed West Philippine Sea (also known as South China Sea) 'will come at a price.'
In his column published by Global Times, Luo Yuan writes: "The Philippines needs to be informed that these provocations will come at a price, which could be much larger than the benefits it can get through the tricks."
"The Philippines is misleading the international community by confusing a sovereign and territorial issue into an issue of sea rights. The nature of the South China Sea disputes lies in which side owns the jurisdiction and sovereignty over certain islands and reefs, but Manila sticks to an arbitration by the international tribunal, which has been clearly stated to have no jurisdiction over territorial disputes,"Yuan added.
The ex-military general explained that both countries are currently engaged in the discussion on maritime disputes as opposed to sovereign disputes and therefore the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) cannot apply to the situation at Ayungin Shoal.
Yuan said the situation at Ayungin Shoal (also known as Second Thomas Shoal) is different from the other disputed islands and reefs saying that sovereignty and jurisdiction belong to China without doubt.
"The Philippines stole the reef shamelessly by deliberately stranding the warship and refusing to drag it away. As a sovereign state which refuses to remedy its mistakes, the Philippines is risking its own international reputation," Yuan added.Read Yuan's full article here.
Lou said if the Philippines refuses to remove the stranded ship from where it lies in the island's seaboard, China can move it out but the Philippines must shoulder the cost.
If the Philippines declines China's "generous" offer, Lou said “China should drive away the ship and reclaim the reef by force,” adding that its execution would be “beyond the Philippines’ imagination.”
Meanwhile in the Philippines, the West Philippine Sea Coalition headed by former DILG Secretary Rafael Alunan, is holding its 3rd Annual Day of Protest in Manila Bay fronting the West Philippine Sea on Saturday, July 25 to protest China's continuing reclamation and expansion in the disputed territories.
Among others, the coalition supports the legal steps taken by the country before the Arbitral Tribunal of the United Nations, It also condemns China's illegal acts including the invasion of Scarborough Shoal and the continued reclamation of the islands in the disputed territories.
http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/retired-general-wants-china-to-take-ayungin-shoal-by-force/article/438996
Lumad chief, rights groups brief UN expert on forced evacuations
From InterAksyon (Jul 21): Lumad chief, rights groups brief UN expert on forced evacuations
Dr. Chaloka Beyani, UN special rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, with human rights advocates, including a lumad chieftain from Davao del Norte, at a meeting in Quezon City. The UN expert is in the country for a 10-day official visit. (photo courtesy of Karapatan)
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114581/lumad-chief-rights-groups-brief-un-expert-on-forced-evacuations
Dr. Chaloka Beyani, UN special rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, with human rights advocates, including a lumad chieftain from Davao del Norte, at a meeting in Quezon City. The UN expert is in the country for a 10-day official visit. (photo courtesy of Karapatan)
A lumad chieftain from Davao del Norte and human
rights groups briefed the United Nations’ expert on internal refugees on
Tuesday on what they said is the widespread forced evacuation of peasants and
indigenous people due to militarization.
Dr. Chaloka Beyani, the special rapporteur on the human
rights of IDPs, met with the rights groups led by Karapatan shortly after
arriving in the country Tuesday for a 10-day official visit on the government’s
invitation.
“The Philippines has a range of internal displacement
issues, which include those caused in 2013 by the devastation wreaked by
typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) where significant progress has been made, as well as
other displacement situations where challenges remain to be addressed,” Beyani
was quoted as saying in a statement released by the UN information center in
Manila to announce his arrival.
“It is my intention to assist in finding solutions as well
as to share experiences with the government,” he added.
Beyani is also scheduled to present his preliminary findings
and recommendations at a media briefing on July 31.
The human rights group Karapatan said it had requested the
meeting with Beyani when it first met him at the UN Human Rights Council
session in Geneva, Switzerland in June last year.
At the meeting, tribal chieftain Tungig Mansimoy-at, an
evacuee from Talaingod, Davao del Norte, told Beyani about the plight of lumad
refugees and of how soldiers continue to occupy their hinterland
communities and schools, which the military has tagged “NPA (New People’s Army)
schools,” Karapatan said.
Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay said they have
so far documented 60,155 victims of forced evacuations under the Aquino
administration, including 650 lumad who have sought sanctuary at the
United Church of Christ in the Philippines
compound in Davao
City
She said more than half the evacuees are from five villages
in Talaingod “who decided to leave their communities when soldiers started to
recruit them into the Alamara, a paramilitary group attached to the 84th
Infantry Battalion-Philippine Army and the 68th IB-PA.”
“The other evacuees who are in Davao
City came from Kapalong, Davao del
Norte and from the province
of Bukidnon
Aside from this, Karaptan said 441 members of the Blaan
tribe in Sarangani fled their homes from May to June “due to bombing, torture
and interrogation, and food blockade,” while from January to March, “almost a
thousand individuals from 15 villages in Agusan del Sur also left their homes
due to military operations and encampment in lumad schools run by the
Rural Missionaries of the Philippines.”
“Ironically, the leaders of organizations who are helping
the evacuees and campaigning for the pullout of the military from the
communities now face criminal charges in court,” Palabay said. “Human rights
workers, religious, children’s rights advocates, peasant and indigenous leaders
were charged with kidnapping, illegal detention and human trafficking.”
She claimed the government’s counterinsurgency program,
Oplan Bayanihan, deliberately targets lumad and peasant
communities, with soldiers and militias committing “numerous cases of
extrajudicial killing, torture, sexual abuse, and violations on the right to
liberty of movement,” following “the same blueprint” that UN special rapporteur
on extrajudicial killings Philip Alston, in a 2007 report, recommended be abandoned.
In his damning report, Alston accused the government and
state security forces of deliberately targeting legal organizations and
activists for extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and other rights
violations by openly labeling them members of supporters of the communist
revolutionary movement.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114581/lumad-chief-rights-groups-brief-un-expert-on-forced-evacuations
P60-B AFP projects lack Noy signature
From the Philippine Star (Jul 22): P60-B AFP projects lack Noy signature
President Aquino checks a newly acquired air asset during the celebration of the 68th founding anniversary of the Philippine Air Force at Air Force City in Clark Air Base, Pampanga. File photo
At least 28 projects worth over P60 billion under the Armed Forces Modernization Law have been delayed for lack of President Aquino’s signature.
Security sources told The STAR yesterday that the program was sent back to the Department of Budget and Management.
This again set back the timetable for the revised Armed Forces Modernization Law, which states that the President, upon recommendation of the budget and defense secretaries, shall submit the program to Congress within 60 days from the date the law took effect.
The still unsigned program was sent to Malacañang back in February 2013, or two months after Aquino signed the measure into law.
Upgrading the Armed Forces of the Philippines has become a pressing concern as the country is struggling to defend its territory against an aggressive and well-equipped Chinese military.
Among the P60.14 billion worth of affected big-ticket items are two Navy frigates costing P18 billion; three air surveillance radars, P2.68 billion; six close air support aircraft, P4.97 billion; two units of long range patrol aircraft, P5.98 billion; multi-purpose attack craft, P864.32-million; night fighting system, P1.116 billion; two C-130 aircraft at P1.6 billion; two naval helicopters at P5.4 billion, and lead-in fighter trainer jets ammunition worth P4.47 billion.
Also facing delays are four basing support system and logistics projects with a total budget of P2.15 billion. The projects seek to improve existing military facilities in strategic areas.
Other items in the list include Army radios, thermal imaging device, field ambulance units, armored personnel carriers, flight simulators, amphibious assault vehicles, combat systems, light utility vehicles and engineering equipment.
Defense officials, however, said President Aquino remains committed to the modernization program.
“These items are being scrutinized. These projects have to be examined because of the changing security environment,” defense department spokesman Peter Galvez said.
If Aquino does not approve the program, the defense department can seek funding for each item but sources admit that it will involve a longer process.
The government plans to spend P25 billion next year to boost the military’s capabilities, a development officials hope will finally bring the armed forces back to its old glory.
“The approval of the P25-billion budget is a very welcome development in our modernization,” Armed Forces public affairs chief Lt. Col. Noel Detoyato said.
Since he assumed power in 2010, President Aquino has been citing the importance of modernizing the military, a sector that was neglected under previous administrations.
Not once did he blame “bad governance” for the depleted capabilities of the AFP, which has deteriorated from being one of the most respected to one of the weakest in the region.
However, questions have been raised on whether Aquino can deliver on his promise as he has yet to sign the AFP Modernization Program, something he was supposed to do two years ago. The program outlines the projects to be funded, schedules and the average cost of each project.
Without Aquino’s signature, projects like surveillance radars, warships and air assets that can boost the country’s territorial defense cannot proceed because their funds will not be released.
To be sure, the Aquino administration has significant accomplishments in terms of modernizing the military.
A total of 55 military upgrade projects completed under the Aquino administration as of July showed that the Army got 22 projects worth P5.02 billion; the Navy was given 19 projects with a total amount of P2.03 bilion and the Air Force got five worth P3.78 billion. Seven projects worth P791 million benefited General Headquarters while the Government Arsenal got two projects worth P130.89 million.
The Aquino administration completed more projects than the previous administration, which implemented a total of 45 projects worth P12.51 billion.
Galvez said the completion of the 55 upgrade projects is “a significant development towards achieving the country’s intended defense capabilities.”
The Air Force projects completed under Aquino were 18 units of basic trainer aircraft worth P621.67 million; one aerial surveillance camera worth P50.99 million: 20 units of MD 520 MG attack helicopters (P214.34 million), eight combat utility helicopters (P2.86 billion) and enhancement of radio electrical instruments and precision measuring equipment laboratory worth P35.79 million.
The completed Navy projects are coast watch systems for two sites (P59.99 million), four lots of night fighting systems (P317.6 million), 720 units of 76 mm ammunition (P46.9 million), 79 units of 20W vehicular configuration radios (P231 million), hydrographic equipment (P4.05 million), 20 units of one-ton troop carriers (P46 million), 20 units of two-ton troop and cargo carriers (P80.5 million), landing craft utility (P178.93 million), Jacinto-class patrol vessels upgrade (P274.65 million), three units of multi-purpose attack aircraft (P268.99 million), coast watch stations for two sites (P23.6 million), 12 units of five-ton prime mover for 155m howitzer trucks (P38.88 million), two units of rigid hull inflatable boats (P34.75 million), 230 units of 7.62mm general purpose machine guns (P161.12 million), 5,503 units of close combat optics (P96 million), explosive ordnance division equipment (P12.54 million), 720 units of 40 mm grenade launcher (P45.05 million), eight units of 40mm automatic grenade launchers (P19.75 million) and 330 personal role radios (P86 million).
The completed Army projects are 137 units of one-ton troop carrier truck (P298.11 million), four light support watercraft (P35.3 million), 250 units of two-ton troop carrier (P837 million), two lots of night fighting systems worth P276.11 million and P372.24 million; 62 units of audio video system (P37.89 million), three units of C4I Geographic Information System (P11.33 million), six units of five-ton prime mover for 155m howitzer truck (P38.88 million), 60 units of field ambulance (P300.78 million), 85 units of special purpose vehicle (P111.9 million), 190 units of one-ton troop carrier truck (P494 million), 840 units of global positioning system (P20.59 million), 12 units of prime mover truck (P144 million), 100 units and 2,000 rounds of 81 mm mortar with ammunition (P189.5 million), 348 units of portable radio receivers (P52.45 million), C41/GIS equipment (P188.88 million), 78 units of audio-video equipment (P11.5 million), two phases of 20W man pack radios worth P380 million and P272.8 million, 1,376 units of 5W handheld radios (P364.14 million), 210 units of 50 W AV configuration radio (P499.57 million), and 53 units of 100W base radios (P80.4 million).
The two completed Government Arsenal projects were metallic raw materials (P120.99 million) and input materials for bullet assembly machine (P9.9 million).
The seven projects that benefited the General Headquarters were AFP Medical Center operating room upgrade (P56.4 million), fixed communication system (P388.9 million), 46 light utility vehicles (P133.4 million), technical forensic upgrade (P19.98 million), 33 units of Presidential Security Group multi-purpose rocket launchers (P37.44 million), radio frequency test equipment (P109.17 million) and enhanced data generation system (P19.97 million).
Two projects funded by the Department of Energy were also completed – two weather high endurance cutters worth P1.78 billion and three naval helicopters worth P1.34 billion.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/07/22/1479631/p60-b-afp-projects-lack-noy-signature
President Aquino checks a newly acquired air asset during the celebration of the 68th founding anniversary of the Philippine Air Force at Air Force City in Clark Air Base, Pampanga. File photo
At least 28 projects worth over P60 billion under the Armed Forces Modernization Law have been delayed for lack of President Aquino’s signature.
Security sources told The STAR yesterday that the program was sent back to the Department of Budget and Management.
This again set back the timetable for the revised Armed Forces Modernization Law, which states that the President, upon recommendation of the budget and defense secretaries, shall submit the program to Congress within 60 days from the date the law took effect.
The still unsigned program was sent to Malacañang back in February 2013, or two months after Aquino signed the measure into law.
Upgrading the Armed Forces of the Philippines has become a pressing concern as the country is struggling to defend its territory against an aggressive and well-equipped Chinese military.
Among the P60.14 billion worth of affected big-ticket items are two Navy frigates costing P18 billion; three air surveillance radars, P2.68 billion; six close air support aircraft, P4.97 billion; two units of long range patrol aircraft, P5.98 billion; multi-purpose attack craft, P864.32-million; night fighting system, P1.116 billion; two C-130 aircraft at P1.6 billion; two naval helicopters at P5.4 billion, and lead-in fighter trainer jets ammunition worth P4.47 billion.
Also facing delays are four basing support system and logistics projects with a total budget of P2.15 billion. The projects seek to improve existing military facilities in strategic areas.
Other items in the list include Army radios, thermal imaging device, field ambulance units, armored personnel carriers, flight simulators, amphibious assault vehicles, combat systems, light utility vehicles and engineering equipment.
Defense officials, however, said President Aquino remains committed to the modernization program.
“These items are being scrutinized. These projects have to be examined because of the changing security environment,” defense department spokesman Peter Galvez said.
If Aquino does not approve the program, the defense department can seek funding for each item but sources admit that it will involve a longer process.
The government plans to spend P25 billion next year to boost the military’s capabilities, a development officials hope will finally bring the armed forces back to its old glory.
“The approval of the P25-billion budget is a very welcome development in our modernization,” Armed Forces public affairs chief Lt. Col. Noel Detoyato said.
Completed
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has so far completed 55 upgrade projects worth P11.71 billion under Aquino’s leadership.Since he assumed power in 2010, President Aquino has been citing the importance of modernizing the military, a sector that was neglected under previous administrations.
Not once did he blame “bad governance” for the depleted capabilities of the AFP, which has deteriorated from being one of the most respected to one of the weakest in the region.
However, questions have been raised on whether Aquino can deliver on his promise as he has yet to sign the AFP Modernization Program, something he was supposed to do two years ago. The program outlines the projects to be funded, schedules and the average cost of each project.
Without Aquino’s signature, projects like surveillance radars, warships and air assets that can boost the country’s territorial defense cannot proceed because their funds will not be released.
To be sure, the Aquino administration has significant accomplishments in terms of modernizing the military.
A total of 55 military upgrade projects completed under the Aquino administration as of July showed that the Army got 22 projects worth P5.02 billion; the Navy was given 19 projects with a total amount of P2.03 bilion and the Air Force got five worth P3.78 billion. Seven projects worth P791 million benefited General Headquarters while the Government Arsenal got two projects worth P130.89 million.
The Aquino administration completed more projects than the previous administration, which implemented a total of 45 projects worth P12.51 billion.
Galvez said the completion of the 55 upgrade projects is “a significant development towards achieving the country’s intended defense capabilities.”
The Air Force projects completed under Aquino were 18 units of basic trainer aircraft worth P621.67 million; one aerial surveillance camera worth P50.99 million: 20 units of MD 520 MG attack helicopters (P214.34 million), eight combat utility helicopters (P2.86 billion) and enhancement of radio electrical instruments and precision measuring equipment laboratory worth P35.79 million.
The completed Navy projects are coast watch systems for two sites (P59.99 million), four lots of night fighting systems (P317.6 million), 720 units of 76 mm ammunition (P46.9 million), 79 units of 20W vehicular configuration radios (P231 million), hydrographic equipment (P4.05 million), 20 units of one-ton troop carriers (P46 million), 20 units of two-ton troop and cargo carriers (P80.5 million), landing craft utility (P178.93 million), Jacinto-class patrol vessels upgrade (P274.65 million), three units of multi-purpose attack aircraft (P268.99 million), coast watch stations for two sites (P23.6 million), 12 units of five-ton prime mover for 155m howitzer trucks (P38.88 million), two units of rigid hull inflatable boats (P34.75 million), 230 units of 7.62mm general purpose machine guns (P161.12 million), 5,503 units of close combat optics (P96 million), explosive ordnance division equipment (P12.54 million), 720 units of 40 mm grenade launcher (P45.05 million), eight units of 40mm automatic grenade launchers (P19.75 million) and 330 personal role radios (P86 million).
The completed Army projects are 137 units of one-ton troop carrier truck (P298.11 million), four light support watercraft (P35.3 million), 250 units of two-ton troop carrier (P837 million), two lots of night fighting systems worth P276.11 million and P372.24 million; 62 units of audio video system (P37.89 million), three units of C4I Geographic Information System (P11.33 million), six units of five-ton prime mover for 155m howitzer truck (P38.88 million), 60 units of field ambulance (P300.78 million), 85 units of special purpose vehicle (P111.9 million), 190 units of one-ton troop carrier truck (P494 million), 840 units of global positioning system (P20.59 million), 12 units of prime mover truck (P144 million), 100 units and 2,000 rounds of 81 mm mortar with ammunition (P189.5 million), 348 units of portable radio receivers (P52.45 million), C41/GIS equipment (P188.88 million), 78 units of audio-video equipment (P11.5 million), two phases of 20W man pack radios worth P380 million and P272.8 million, 1,376 units of 5W handheld radios (P364.14 million), 210 units of 50 W AV configuration radio (P499.57 million), and 53 units of 100W base radios (P80.4 million).
The two completed Government Arsenal projects were metallic raw materials (P120.99 million) and input materials for bullet assembly machine (P9.9 million).
The seven projects that benefited the General Headquarters were AFP Medical Center operating room upgrade (P56.4 million), fixed communication system (P388.9 million), 46 light utility vehicles (P133.4 million), technical forensic upgrade (P19.98 million), 33 units of Presidential Security Group multi-purpose rocket launchers (P37.44 million), radio frequency test equipment (P109.17 million) and enhanced data generation system (P19.97 million).
Two projects funded by the Department of Energy were also completed – two weather high endurance cutters worth P1.78 billion and three naval helicopters worth P1.34 billion.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/07/22/1479631/p60-b-afp-projects-lack-noy-signature
Philippines Hikes Defense Budget 25%
From Defense News (Jul 21): Philippines Hikes Defense Budget 25%
Beijing
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/policy-budget/budget/2015/07/21/philippines-hikes-defense-budget-25-percent-amid-south-china-sea-dispute--china/30464145/
The Philippines is planning a 25 percent hike in its
defense budget next year, mainly to bolster its claims in the disputed South China Sea , officials said Tuesday.
The proposed 2016
national budget, which President Benigno Aquino is to present to parliament for
approval on Monday, would reserve a record 25 billion pesos (US $552 million)
for defense spending.
Funds would be
used to acquire navy frigates and patrol aircraft, budget and defense officials
told AFP.
"We need to
protect what is clearly within our territorial jurisdiction," Budget
Secretary Florencio Abad said, when asked if the increase was due to the Philippines ' maritime row with China
"Certainly,
we need to at least be able to effectively monitor the developments in the
area, particularly those in disputed zones," he added.
Under the 3
trillion peso budget bill, defense spending would be up from a 20 billion
peso military budget last year and five times bigger than in 2013, the
officials said.
The proposed 2016
defense budget is part of a five-year, 75 billion peso military modernization
program approved by Aquino in 2013, Abad said.
The amount would
still be dwarfed by China ,
which claims most of the South China Sea ,
including areas close to the shores of its Asian neighbors. Beijing
Modernization
Catch-up
One of the
region's most poorly equipped, the Philippine military relies on
half-century-old ships and aircraft keeping watch over the South
China Sea , where tensions have flared recently.
The Philippines
is catching up on military modernization after spending was held back to just 5
billion pesos in 2013 as the government shifted resources to recovery from
Super Typhoon Haiyan, which struck the country that year leaving 7,350 people
dead or missing.
The Philippine
military's mission to protect the country's territory is complicated by
long-running communist and Muslim insurgencies that force it to devote
troops and equipment for internal security.
While China has gone on an island-building frenzy to
reinforce its claims on South China Sea reefs and waters, the Philippines
The BRP Sierra
Madre, emblematic of the Philippine military, was deliberately grounded on
Second Thomas Shoal in 1995 in a desperate move to check China
The South China
Sea chain is also disputed in whole or in part by Brunei ,
Malaysia , Taiwan and Vietnam
"This budget
will allow us more latitude in acquiring new assets for the Armed Forces of the
Philippines
Two of 12 fighter
jets that the Philippines
had bought from South Korea
A United
Nations-backed tribunal is expected to decide in months whether it has
jurisdiction over a Philippine petition to declare China
http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/policy-budget/budget/2015/07/21/philippines-hikes-defense-budget-25-percent-amid-south-china-sea-dispute--china/30464145/
Video: Inside the USNS Mercy
From ABS-CBN (Jul 21): Video: Inside the USNS Mercy
[Mercy video]
ROXAS CITY - The 894-ft long United States Naval Ship (USNS) Mercy has arrived in Roxas City, Capiz for a two-week humanitarian mission starting today.
The US naval hospital ship is capable of hosting 1,000 patients that were earlier screened and selected by the provincial government of Capiz.
The USNS mercy medical team will initiate dental, medical and surgical activities to the selected beneficiaries under the Pacific Partnership 2015.
Aside from the humanitarian mission, USNS Mercy's disaster response team will train local rescuers and emergency responders.
They will enhance the skills and capabilities of the local disaster response teams in the different municipalities of Capiz.
The United States Coast Guard will demonstrate the proper search and rescue techniques in Culasi Port next week using the vessel's Sea Hawk SAR helicopter.
Other activities will cover women's peace and security symposium, community health engagement, veterinarian village outreach, and gender and development forum.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/video/nation/regions/07/21/15/look-inside-usns-mercy
[Mercy video]
ROXAS CITY - The 894-ft long United States Naval Ship (USNS) Mercy has arrived in Roxas City, Capiz for a two-week humanitarian mission starting today.
The US naval hospital ship is capable of hosting 1,000 patients that were earlier screened and selected by the provincial government of Capiz.
The USNS mercy medical team will initiate dental, medical and surgical activities to the selected beneficiaries under the Pacific Partnership 2015.
Aside from the humanitarian mission, USNS Mercy's disaster response team will train local rescuers and emergency responders.
They will enhance the skills and capabilities of the local disaster response teams in the different municipalities of Capiz.
The United States Coast Guard will demonstrate the proper search and rescue techniques in Culasi Port next week using the vessel's Sea Hawk SAR helicopter.
Other activities will cover women's peace and security symposium, community health engagement, veterinarian village outreach, and gender and development forum.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/video/nation/regions/07/21/15/look-inside-usns-mercy
CPP/NDF-Bicol: Patuloy na Lumalakas ang Bagong Hukbong Bayan sa Bikol!
NDF propaganda statement posted to the CPP Website (Jul 17): Patuloy na Lumalakas ang Bagong Hukbong Bayan sa Bikol!
NPA Propaganda Squad leader killed in Camarines Norte
From Ang Malaya (Jul 21): NPA Propaganda Squad leader killed in Camarines Norte
The leader of NPA Propaganda Squad in Camarines Norte, Romeo Gresola ,was killed after a gun battle with a squad of Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) morning of Monday, July 20. The CAFGU squad stationed at Brgy. Sta. Elena in Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte made a counterattack after the group of Gresola harassed their detachment.
“A rebel leader was killed after a squad composed of a soldier and eight (8) Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) Active Auxiliaries counterattacked an NPA harassment of their detachment in Brgy. Sta. Elena in Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte around 10 a.m. of July 20, 2015,” Armed Forces of the Philippines – Southern Luzon Command said.
902nd Infantry Brigade Commander Colonel Amador Tabuga said seven (7) rebels positioned themselves and fired approximately 300 meters away from the CAFGU Active Auxiliary (CAA) Detachment.
“Initially, the detachment held their position, then their squad leader led his men to a counterattack and successfully engaged the NPAs that resulted to one (1) rebel dead,” said Colonel Tabuga.
Colonel Tabuga, who immediately went to the encounter site to personally check the situation, said that one CAFGU member suffered minor shrapnel wound from the initial fires of the rebels.
Colonel Tabuga positively identified the NPA leader as Romeo Gresola, team leader of the Propaganda Squad in Camarines Norte, while the wounded CAFGU was identified as CAA Hubert Pagao.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12287-npa-propaganda-squad-leader-killed-in-camarines-norte
The leader of NPA Propaganda Squad in Camarines Norte, Romeo Gresola ,was killed after a gun battle with a squad of Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) morning of Monday, July 20. The CAFGU squad stationed at Brgy. Sta. Elena in Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte made a counterattack after the group of Gresola harassed their detachment.
“A rebel leader was killed after a squad composed of a soldier and eight (8) Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU) Active Auxiliaries counterattacked an NPA harassment of their detachment in Brgy. Sta. Elena in Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte around 10 a.m. of July 20, 2015,” Armed Forces of the Philippines – Southern Luzon Command said.
902nd Infantry Brigade Commander Colonel Amador Tabuga said seven (7) rebels positioned themselves and fired approximately 300 meters away from the CAFGU Active Auxiliary (CAA) Detachment.
“Initially, the detachment held their position, then their squad leader led his men to a counterattack and successfully engaged the NPAs that resulted to one (1) rebel dead,” said Colonel Tabuga.
Colonel Tabuga, who immediately went to the encounter site to personally check the situation, said that one CAFGU member suffered minor shrapnel wound from the initial fires of the rebels.
Colonel Tabuga positively identified the NPA leader as Romeo Gresola, team leader of the Propaganda Squad in Camarines Norte, while the wounded CAFGU was identified as CAA Hubert Pagao.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12287-npa-propaganda-squad-leader-killed-in-camarines-norte
Army Dragon Boat Team wins gold in Japan
From Ang Malaya (Jul 21): Army Dragon Boat Team wins gold in Japan
Philippine Army (PA) Commander Major General Eduardo Ano lauded the PA Dragon Boat Team for winning the gold medal at the men’s 250-meter race in Osaka, Japan Sunday. The team posted an average heat time of 53 seconds, paddling against the current on the Okawa River for the final 100 meters before finishing one second ahead of the Japanese National Team-5 of whom the PA had trained before.
“The Commanding General of the Army, Major Gen. Eduardo Ano, has sent his warm congratulations to the Philippine Army Dragon Boat Team for winning the gold in the 250-meter Men’s Open Category of the Japan Dragon Boat Championship in Osaka, Japan, Sunday,” PA spokesperson Major Enrico Gil Ileto said.
“Truly another world-class performance that has once again inspired the 85,000-strong Army. They have shown the world how comradeship and discipline will make a difference in every endeavor,” he added.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12291-army-dragon-boat-team-wins-gold-in-japan
Philippine Army (PA) Commander Major General Eduardo Ano lauded the PA Dragon Boat Team for winning the gold medal at the men’s 250-meter race in Osaka, Japan Sunday. The team posted an average heat time of 53 seconds, paddling against the current on the Okawa River for the final 100 meters before finishing one second ahead of the Japanese National Team-5 of whom the PA had trained before.
“The Commanding General of the Army, Major Gen. Eduardo Ano, has sent his warm congratulations to the Philippine Army Dragon Boat Team for winning the gold in the 250-meter Men’s Open Category of the Japan Dragon Boat Championship in Osaka, Japan, Sunday,” PA spokesperson Major Enrico Gil Ileto said.
“Truly another world-class performance that has once again inspired the 85,000-strong Army. They have shown the world how comradeship and discipline will make a difference in every endeavor,” he added.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12291-army-dragon-boat-team-wins-gold-in-japan
Philippines: Nothing wrong with US surveillance flight
From Ang Malaya (Jul 21): Philippines: Nothing wrong with US surveillance flight
The Philippines government defended on Tuesday a top United States Navy official’s maritime surveillance mission in the contested West Philippine Sea amid criticisms from rival China. US Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Scott Swift said he was on board a Boeing P-8 surveillance plane for seven hours when it conducted overflights at the disputed waters, a move that has irked Beijing, which asserts ownership over nearly the entire sea.
Manila said it does not see anything wrong with the surveillance flight.
“They were flying over international airspace so they have every right to exercise freedom of overflight,” Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose told a press briefing.
Swift’s mission, a Chinese defense ministry statement said, “seriously damaged mutual trust” between China and the US.
The South China Sea, which is teeming with abundant marine resources and where natural gas and oil have been found in several areas, is claimed in whole or in parts by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Overlapping claims over the waters, where a bulk of the world’s trade pass, are feared to be Asia’s next potential flashpoint for military conflict.
Manila sought international arbitration to denigrate China’s claim which extends beyond what it is allowed under international law.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12298-philippines-nothing-wrong-with-us-surveillance-flight
The Philippines government defended on Tuesday a top United States Navy official’s maritime surveillance mission in the contested West Philippine Sea amid criticisms from rival China. US Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Scott Swift said he was on board a Boeing P-8 surveillance plane for seven hours when it conducted overflights at the disputed waters, a move that has irked Beijing, which asserts ownership over nearly the entire sea.
Manila said it does not see anything wrong with the surveillance flight.
“They were flying over international airspace so they have every right to exercise freedom of overflight,” Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose told a press briefing.
Swift’s mission, a Chinese defense ministry statement said, “seriously damaged mutual trust” between China and the US.
The South China Sea, which is teeming with abundant marine resources and where natural gas and oil have been found in several areas, is claimed in whole or in parts by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan.
Overlapping claims over the waters, where a bulk of the world’s trade pass, are feared to be Asia’s next potential flashpoint for military conflict.
Manila sought international arbitration to denigrate China’s claim which extends beyond what it is allowed under international law.
http://www.angmalaya.net/nation/2015/07/21/12298-philippines-nothing-wrong-with-us-surveillance-flight
Army gets rescue equipment
From the Visayan Daily Star (Jul 21): Army gets rescue equipment
TheDumaguete
City
http://www.visayandailystar.com/2015/July/21/negor1.htm
The
City Administrator William Ablong led the turnover, and Lt.
Col. Harold Anthony Pascua, 79th IB commander, accompanied by some soldiers,
received the donation, including three transistor radios, three megaphones, 30
aluminum carabiners, three small chainsaws, one tandem pulley, utility ropes of
700 meters each, six flashlight heavy duty water proofing, 30 hard hats and 30
life vests, among others, Syril Repe of the City Information Office said.
Pascua thanked the city for the donation, adding these will
be a big help to soldiers during disaster operations.
He added the donation is a “manifestation of a strong
partnership between the Philippine Army and the citizenry in looking after the
safety, security and upliftment of living conditions of the people we are bound
to serve.”
Ablong said the City Peace and Order Management Council
allocated the budget for the procurement of rescue equipment for the Army
battalion, that plays a significant role during disasters and other
emergencies.
Mayor Manuel Sagarbarria does not hesitate in extending
assistance in whatever form to law enforcement and similarly-natured
responsibilities to provide basic services to the residents of Dumaguete,
Ablong added.
Pascua assured the 79th IB will immediately deploy a platoon
to Dumaguete City
http://www.visayandailystar.com/2015/July/21/negor1.htm
China: US surveillance damaged mutual trust
From the Philippine Star (Jul 21): China: US surveillance damaged mutual trust
Adm. Scott Swift, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, observes operations aboard a P-8A Poseidon aircraft during a flight hosted by the Pelicans of Patrol Squadron (VP) 45. US Navy/Tyler R. Fraser/Released)
The surveillance flight of a United States (US) military aircraft over the West Philippine and South China Sea has damaged bilateral mutual trust, China's Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Monday.
China also said that the frequent and wide-ranging close surveillance of the US has jeopardized the country's security interests, according to a report from China-based Global Times.
A top US Navy admiral earlier confirmed that he had been aboard a seven-hour flight of a Boeing P-8 surveillance plane.
Admiral Scott Swift, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, clarified the said surveillance flight conducted last Saturday was routine and reiterated that the US was committed to freedom of navigation in the region.
READ: Pacific Fleet commander says surveillance flight ‘routine’
"The surveillance is a signal that the US has grown increasingly keen on pushing forward its strategic rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific, featuring a more in-depth intervention in the South China Sea," maritime border expert Wang Xiaopeng told the Global Times.
Last May, the Chinese navy warned a US surveillance plane flying over the artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea.
The US surveillance aircraft received eight warnings from the Chinese navy, asking them to leave the area.
The Chinese Defense Minister once again called on the US not to take sides on the territorial dispute over the South China Sea.
The Philippines filed an arbitration case against China, challenging its nine-dash line claim over the South China Sea.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/07/21/1479352/china-us-surveillance-damaged-mutual-trust
Adm. Scott Swift, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, observes operations aboard a P-8A Poseidon aircraft during a flight hosted by the Pelicans of Patrol Squadron (VP) 45. US Navy/Tyler R. Fraser/Released)
The surveillance flight of a United States (US) military aircraft over the West Philippine and South China Sea has damaged bilateral mutual trust, China's Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Monday.
China also said that the frequent and wide-ranging close surveillance of the US has jeopardized the country's security interests, according to a report from China-based Global Times.
A top US Navy admiral earlier confirmed that he had been aboard a seven-hour flight of a Boeing P-8 surveillance plane.
Admiral Scott Swift, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, clarified the said surveillance flight conducted last Saturday was routine and reiterated that the US was committed to freedom of navigation in the region.
READ: Pacific Fleet commander says surveillance flight ‘routine’
"The surveillance is a signal that the US has grown increasingly keen on pushing forward its strategic rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific, featuring a more in-depth intervention in the South China Sea," maritime border expert Wang Xiaopeng told the Global Times.
Last May, the Chinese navy warned a US surveillance plane flying over the artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea.
The US surveillance aircraft received eight warnings from the Chinese navy, asking them to leave the area.
The Chinese Defense Minister once again called on the US not to take sides on the territorial dispute over the South China Sea.
The Philippines filed an arbitration case against China, challenging its nine-dash line claim over the South China Sea.
http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2015/07/21/1479352/china-us-surveillance-damaged-mutual-trust
Rebel dead, militiaman hurt in Camarines Norte clash
From the Philippine Star (Jul 21): Rebel dead, militiaman hurt in Camarines Norte clash
Attacks by communist rebels on government troops have been frequent in recent months, especially in remote areas of the country
A suspected communist rebel was killed on Monday while a government militiaman was wounded during an encounter in Camarines Norte, the military said.
Attacks by communist rebels on government troops have been frequent in recent months, especially in remote areas of the country
A suspected communist rebel was killed on Monday while a government militiaman was wounded during an encounter in Camarines Norte, the military said.
A report from the 9th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army identified the injured as Hubert Pagao, a member of the Civilian Auxiliary Force Geographical Unit.
The military said that the firefight began around 10 a.m. in Barangay Sta. Elena in Jose Panganiban town when a group of patrolling soldiers, led by a certain Sgt. Pujeda, was fired upon by around seven armed men.
The rebels fled the area after the five-minute gun battle, the military added. .
Soldiers later recovered one of the rebels' body in the area while Pagao was rushed to a nearest hospital for treatment.
PNP chief assures fair promotion to non-PMAers
From the Philippine Star (Jul 21): PNP chief assures fair promotion to non-PMAers
Newly appointed Philippine National Police chief Ricardo Marquez during a media briefing at Camp Crame, Quezon City.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ricardo Marquez has assured all police officials and personnel of fair placement and promotion, noting that they will be based on merit, competence and seniority.
Newly appointed Philippine National Police chief Ricardo Marquez during a media briefing at Camp Crame, Quezon City.
Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ricardo Marquez has assured all police officials and personnel of fair placement and promotion, noting that they will be based on merit, competence and seniority.
"I have issued instructions to the Directorate for Personnel and Records Management to constitute a study group composed of representatives from all sources of commission, with a human resources expert from the private sector, to work on the mechanics of a competency-based selection, placement and promotion system that is sustainable, fair and reliable," Marquez said.
He cited that his appoint as PNP chief is a product of meritocracy, with the chief executive recognizing his 33 years of hard work.
"It is but fitting that I make meritocracy the hallmark of my administration," he added.
He said that he will erase the image of the appointing power as one with perceived bias against PNP personnel who did not graduate from the Philippine Military Academy (PMA).
Marquez reiterated his position that there must be equal opportunities for everyone in the PNP regardless of the source of commission as well as gender.
He also took exception to statement attributed to the PNPA Alumni Association Inc. that assailed Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas for alleged inaction on their appeal to correct the disparity in the promotion and assignment of officers in the PNP.
Marquez also said that "this system shall guide higher authorities in making informed decisions when they appoint police commanders."
NPA rebels attack 12 security outposts; 1 dead
From the Philippine Star (Jul 21): NPA rebels attack 12 security outposts; 1 dead
Communist guerrillas attacked a dozen mostly rural army outposts, including in two provinces where officials have declared that the insurgents have been considerably weakened, the military said Tuesday.
New People's Army guerrillas fired on 11 army outposts and a police station on Monday in the northeastern provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte and Sorsogon, sparking a clash that killed one of the insurgents, regional military spokesman Maj. Angelo Guzman said.
A police officer, a government militiaman and six villagers were wounded in the attacks.
Authorities have declared that the decades-long insurgency has been considerably weakened in recent months in Albay and Camarines Norte, allowing civilian officials to take charge of the anti-insurgency program from the military. Army troops, however, have remained in those provinces to back up officials and police in battling the remaining insurgents.
Guzman said the attacks were a desperate effort by the insurgents to project a strong image after being crippled by years of military offensives. They also wanted to retaliate following the deaths of seven guerrillas in recent clashes in the region, he said.
"These attacks were done for propaganda," Guzman said. "They were not meant to overrun these army detachments because they have been so weakened to do that."
In one of three attacks in Albay, the guerrillas fired a rifle grenade that missed army troops in Daraga town. The grenade instead hit a nearby house and wounded six villagers, including a child, Guzman said.
The Marxist insurgency has flared on and off for 46 years, one of the longest-running rebellions in Asia. Norway-brokered negotiations to end the fighting have stalled.
http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/07/21/1479555/npa-rebels-attack-12-security-outposts-1-dead
Communist guerrillas attacked a dozen mostly rural army outposts, including in two provinces where officials have declared that the insurgents have been considerably weakened, the military said Tuesday.
New People's Army guerrillas fired on 11 army outposts and a police station on Monday in the northeastern provinces of Albay, Camarines Norte and Sorsogon, sparking a clash that killed one of the insurgents, regional military spokesman Maj. Angelo Guzman said.
A police officer, a government militiaman and six villagers were wounded in the attacks.
Authorities have declared that the decades-long insurgency has been considerably weakened in recent months in Albay and Camarines Norte, allowing civilian officials to take charge of the anti-insurgency program from the military. Army troops, however, have remained in those provinces to back up officials and police in battling the remaining insurgents.
Guzman said the attacks were a desperate effort by the insurgents to project a strong image after being crippled by years of military offensives. They also wanted to retaliate following the deaths of seven guerrillas in recent clashes in the region, he said.
"These attacks were done for propaganda," Guzman said. "They were not meant to overrun these army detachments because they have been so weakened to do that."
In one of three attacks in Albay, the guerrillas fired a rifle grenade that missed army troops in Daraga town. The grenade instead hit a nearby house and wounded six villagers, including a child, Guzman said.
The Marxist insurgency has flared on and off for 46 years, one of the longest-running rebellions in Asia. Norway-brokered negotiations to end the fighting have stalled.
http://www.philstar.com/nation/2015/07/21/1479555/npa-rebels-attack-12-security-outposts-1-dead
US Navy commander stresses positives in China relationship
From the Philippine Star (Jul 21): US Navy commander stresses positives in China relationship
The Navy's new commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet sounded a conciliatory note toward China on Tuesday during the last stop of a three-country Asian tour.
"We have much more in common than we do in competition," Adm. Scott Swift told reporters in Tokyo.
He added, though, that the Navy is ready to respond to any situation that might arise, if called upon by the American president.
The U.S. and China have quarreled over China's land reclamation and construction activity on reefs in the South China Sea that are claimed by multiple countries.
Swift said that progress is being made on the U.S.-China relationship, but that the friction often overshadows it. He cited a new code to govern unplanned encounters at sea that both countries and others in the region have implemented.
He also predicted that any change in the Navy's ties with its Japanese counterpart resulting from legislation to expand Japan's military role would be evolutionary rather than revolutionary.
Swift, on his first trip to Asia since assuming command of the Pacific Fleet in late May, visited the Philippines and South Korea before Japan. The 200 ships and submarines and 1,100 aircraft of the Pacific Fleet cover a vast area that encompasses nearly half the earth's surface.
http://www.philstar.com/world/2015/07/21/1479641/us-navy-commander-stresses-positives-china-relationship
The Navy's new commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet sounded a conciliatory note toward China on Tuesday during the last stop of a three-country Asian tour.
"We have much more in common than we do in competition," Adm. Scott Swift told reporters in Tokyo.
He added, though, that the Navy is ready to respond to any situation that might arise, if called upon by the American president.
The U.S. and China have quarreled over China's land reclamation and construction activity on reefs in the South China Sea that are claimed by multiple countries.
Swift said that progress is being made on the U.S.-China relationship, but that the friction often overshadows it. He cited a new code to govern unplanned encounters at sea that both countries and others in the region have implemented.
He also predicted that any change in the Navy's ties with its Japanese counterpart resulting from legislation to expand Japan's military role would be evolutionary rather than revolutionary.
Swift, on his first trip to Asia since assuming command of the Pacific Fleet in late May, visited the Philippines and South Korea before Japan. The 200 ships and submarines and 1,100 aircraft of the Pacific Fleet cover a vast area that encompasses nearly half the earth's surface.
http://www.philstar.com/world/2015/07/21/1479641/us-navy-commander-stresses-positives-china-relationship
Ranking communist leader, wife nabbed in QC, Bulacan –military
From GMA News (Jul 21): Ranking communist leader, wife nabbed in QC, Bulacan –military
Law enforcement authorities on Monday arrested an alleged ranking communist leader and his wife in separate operations in Quezon City and Bulacan province, the military said Tuesday.
In a news release, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) identified the arrested suspects as Ernesto Lorenzo a.k.a. Ernie Lorenzo and his wife Joyce Felicia Latayan.
It said Lorenzo, who was arrested at the Gilmore Commercial Plaza in Quezon City around 12:15 p.m., is the Communist Party of the Philippines' 1st deputy secretary in the Southern Tagalog Region and also a member of the CPP's Executive Committee of Southern Tagalog Region.
The military added that Lorenzo also heads the CPP's Regional Organization Department and a former secretary of the communist group's Komiteng Probinsyal of the Quezon and Laguna provinces.
Meanwhile, Latayan was arrested in their residence in Barangay Tungkong Mangga in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan at around 2:10 p.m. on Monday.
The military said Lorenzo has an active warrant of arrest for destructive arson since 2010 while Latayan has been wanted for a criminal case since 2008.
Both suspects are currently detained in Camp Crame, main headquarters of the Philippine National Police.
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/525710/news/regions/ranking-communist-leader-wife-nabbed-in-qc-bulacan-military
Law enforcement authorities on Monday arrested an alleged ranking communist leader and his wife in separate operations in Quezon City and Bulacan province, the military said Tuesday.
In a news release, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) identified the arrested suspects as Ernesto Lorenzo a.k.a. Ernie Lorenzo and his wife Joyce Felicia Latayan.
It said Lorenzo, who was arrested at the Gilmore Commercial Plaza in Quezon City around 12:15 p.m., is the Communist Party of the Philippines' 1st deputy secretary in the Southern Tagalog Region and also a member of the CPP's Executive Committee of Southern Tagalog Region.
The military added that Lorenzo also heads the CPP's Regional Organization Department and a former secretary of the communist group's Komiteng Probinsyal of the Quezon and Laguna provinces.
Meanwhile, Latayan was arrested in their residence in Barangay Tungkong Mangga in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan at around 2:10 p.m. on Monday.
The military said Lorenzo has an active warrant of arrest for destructive arson since 2010 while Latayan has been wanted for a criminal case since 2008.
Both suspects are currently detained in Camp Crame, main headquarters of the Philippine National Police.
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/525710/news/regions/ranking-communist-leader-wife-nabbed-in-qc-bulacan-military
New AFP chief has poor record on human rights, say Abra rights groups
From InterAksyon (Jul 20): New AFP chief has poor record on human rights, say Abra rights groups
The wake of Brandon Magranga, NPA fighter killed in September 2014. Photographed by Arthur L. Allad-iw
Some human rights groups in the province of Abra are not happy about the Aquino administration's promotion of Lt. Gen. Hernando Iriberri as the chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, on grounds, they claimed, of Iriberri's alleged human rights violations in the province.
The Abra Human Rights Alliance (AHRA) and the Kakailyan Salakniban Tay Amin a Nagtaudan (KASTAN), a province wide people's organization, claimed that the track record of Gen. Iriberri dates back to when he was commanding officer of the Philippine Army 503rd brigade.
They also said that the militaristic approach of the new AFP chief to crush the insurgency will bring "un-peace rather than addressing the root cause of the armed revolution in the country," a situation where, they added, the brunt of the conflict will be shouldered by the civilians.
Among the alleged human rights violations attributed to Iriberri under his command were:
The bombing by the 503rd Brigade of villages in Lat-ey, Malibcong where two minor girls were almost hit and traumatized by the incident;
The desecration of the remains of eight NPA rebels in Tineg by the 41st IB under the 503rd Brigade;
The alleged murder of father and sons Licuben, Fermin and Eddie Ligiw in Sito Sucao, Domenglay, Licuan-Baay, in March 2014 by the 41st IB under his 503rd Brigade;
The verbal abuse of women in Malibcong by 41st IB troops under his 503rd Brigade, where he failed to reprimand them. The community directed them to indemnify the victims but that has remained unfulfilled until now.
Still under the 503rd Brigade, the 41st IB allegedly killed Engineer Fidela Salvador, a civilian who was supervising community projects when the 41st IB encountered elements of the NPA in the area.
"They used 23 individuals in Lacub to act as human shields from their enemy, where one civilian, Noel Viste, was killed in the incidents," AHRA said, adding that seven NPA fighters were killed and desecrated and bore sign of torture.
"He has a record of violating human rights of civilians and NPA combatants. Only his fellow human rights violators can say that his hands are clean," Villamor Pati, KASTAN chairperson, pointed out. "Gen. Iriberri failed to correct the excesses of his men."
AHRM chairperson Demetrio Batay-an claimed that it was under Iriberri that the AFP implemented Oplan Bayanihan where even legitimate groups and NGOs in the province were systematically harassed.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114528/new-afp-chief-has-bloody-records-on-human-rights-say-abra-rights-groups
The wake of Brandon Magranga, NPA fighter killed in September 2014. Photographed by Arthur L. Allad-iw
Some human rights groups in the province of Abra are not happy about the Aquino administration's promotion of Lt. Gen. Hernando Iriberri as the chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, on grounds, they claimed, of Iriberri's alleged human rights violations in the province.
The Abra Human Rights Alliance (AHRA) and the Kakailyan Salakniban Tay Amin a Nagtaudan (KASTAN), a province wide people's organization, claimed that the track record of Gen. Iriberri dates back to when he was commanding officer of the Philippine Army 503rd brigade.
They also said that the militaristic approach of the new AFP chief to crush the insurgency will bring "un-peace rather than addressing the root cause of the armed revolution in the country," a situation where, they added, the brunt of the conflict will be shouldered by the civilians.
Among the alleged human rights violations attributed to Iriberri under his command were:
The bombing by the 503rd Brigade of villages in Lat-ey, Malibcong where two minor girls were almost hit and traumatized by the incident;
The desecration of the remains of eight NPA rebels in Tineg by the 41st IB under the 503rd Brigade;
The alleged murder of father and sons Licuben, Fermin and Eddie Ligiw in Sito Sucao, Domenglay, Licuan-Baay, in March 2014 by the 41st IB under his 503rd Brigade;
The verbal abuse of women in Malibcong by 41st IB troops under his 503rd Brigade, where he failed to reprimand them. The community directed them to indemnify the victims but that has remained unfulfilled until now.
Still under the 503rd Brigade, the 41st IB allegedly killed Engineer Fidela Salvador, a civilian who was supervising community projects when the 41st IB encountered elements of the NPA in the area.
"They used 23 individuals in Lacub to act as human shields from their enemy, where one civilian, Noel Viste, was killed in the incidents," AHRA said, adding that seven NPA fighters were killed and desecrated and bore sign of torture.
"He has a record of violating human rights of civilians and NPA combatants. Only his fellow human rights violators can say that his hands are clean," Villamor Pati, KASTAN chairperson, pointed out. "Gen. Iriberri failed to correct the excesses of his men."
AHRM chairperson Demetrio Batay-an claimed that it was under Iriberri that the AFP implemented Oplan Bayanihan where even legitimate groups and NGOs in the province were systematically harassed.
http://www.interaksyon.com/article/114528/new-afp-chief-has-bloody-records-on-human-rights-say-abra-rights-groups
PH to equip Subic with FA-50 fighter jets, frigates
From the Philippine Daily Inquirer (Jul 21): PH to equip Subic with FA-50 fighter jets, frigates
This is the kind of fighter jet—called the FA-50—the Philippines acquires from South Korea. This combat aircraft can carry an array of weaponry, such as air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, and precision-guided bombers, and is equipped with a night vision imaging system. PHOTO FROM WWW.KOREAAERO.COM
The Philippines plans to station fighter jets and frigates on a former US naval base facing the South China Sea, where it is engaged in a maritime row with China, a defense official said Monday.
They will be located in Subic Bay, some 200 kilometers from a shoal off the northern Philippines controlled by Chinese forces, said Arsenio Andolong, the defense department’s public affairs chief.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines “will use portions of Subic for the new assets coming in like the FA-50 (jets) and the new vessels that are arriving,” Andolong told AFP.
“They (the Subic facilities) are ideal: it has a deep-water port, the runways are perfect for the FA-50,” he added.
Manila said last week it would reopen Subic Bay–one of the US’s largest overseas bases until it was shut down more than two decades ago–and station Filipino military assets there for the first time.
Andolong said the military has leased part of Subic Bay for 15 years and plans to use it as a base for new equipment that will be bought over the next few years as part of a modernization program.
The first pair of a dozen FA-50 fighter jets is scheduled to be delivered this year and the other 10 will arrive within two years, he added. The military is still evaluating from where to acquire two new frigates.
Subic Bay currently serves as a commercial port and tourist site facing onto the South China Sea where China is locked in a dispute with the Philippines as well as Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan over conflicting territorial claims.
Andolong said the South China Sea dispute was “one of the considerations that were envisioned when the (lease agreement) was signed.”
He also said the “proximity” to Scarborough Shoal–a rich fishing ground that was occupied by Chinese ships after a standoff with the Philippines in 2012–was another.
The Philippines has been building up its weak military and improving defense ties with close ally the US as its territorial dispute with China has increased.
Andolong said US ships could continue to make port calls and hold military exercises there as they have been doing in recent years, but brushed aside speculation Subic would become a US base again.
Last year, Manila signed an agreement giving the United States more access to Filipino military facilities, but the deal has been postponed because of a legal challenge now being heard by the Supreme Court.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706487/ph-to-equip-subic-with-fa-50-fighter-jets-frigates
This is the kind of fighter jet—called the FA-50—the Philippines acquires from South Korea. This combat aircraft can carry an array of weaponry, such as air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, and precision-guided bombers, and is equipped with a night vision imaging system. PHOTO FROM WWW.KOREAAERO.COM
The Philippines plans to station fighter jets and frigates on a former US naval base facing the South China Sea, where it is engaged in a maritime row with China, a defense official said Monday.
They will be located in Subic Bay, some 200 kilometers from a shoal off the northern Philippines controlled by Chinese forces, said Arsenio Andolong, the defense department’s public affairs chief.
The Armed Forces of the Philippines “will use portions of Subic for the new assets coming in like the FA-50 (jets) and the new vessels that are arriving,” Andolong told AFP.
“They (the Subic facilities) are ideal: it has a deep-water port, the runways are perfect for the FA-50,” he added.
Manila said last week it would reopen Subic Bay–one of the US’s largest overseas bases until it was shut down more than two decades ago–and station Filipino military assets there for the first time.
Andolong said the military has leased part of Subic Bay for 15 years and plans to use it as a base for new equipment that will be bought over the next few years as part of a modernization program.
The first pair of a dozen FA-50 fighter jets is scheduled to be delivered this year and the other 10 will arrive within two years, he added. The military is still evaluating from where to acquire two new frigates.
Subic Bay currently serves as a commercial port and tourist site facing onto the South China Sea where China is locked in a dispute with the Philippines as well as Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan over conflicting territorial claims.
Andolong said the South China Sea dispute was “one of the considerations that were envisioned when the (lease agreement) was signed.”
He also said the “proximity” to Scarborough Shoal–a rich fishing ground that was occupied by Chinese ships after a standoff with the Philippines in 2012–was another.
The Philippines has been building up its weak military and improving defense ties with close ally the US as its territorial dispute with China has increased.
Andolong said US ships could continue to make port calls and hold military exercises there as they have been doing in recent years, but brushed aside speculation Subic would become a US base again.
Last year, Manila signed an agreement giving the United States more access to Filipino military facilities, but the deal has been postponed because of a legal challenge now being heard by the Supreme Court.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/706487/ph-to-equip-subic-with-fa-50-fighter-jets-frigates
Philippines hikes defense budget amid China tensions
From Rappler (Jul 21): Philippines hikes defense budget amid China tensions
The proposed 2016 national budget reserves a record P25 billion for defense spending
HAND-ME-DOWN. The Philippine Navy's most capable warship, BRP Ramon Alcaraz, is an excess defense article from the US Coast Guard. Rappler file photo Carmela Fonbuena/Rappler
ThePhilippines is planning a 25% hike in its
defense budget next year to bolster its claims in the disputed South China Sea , officials said Tuesday, July 21.
Beijing
Beijing
http://www.rappler.com/nation/100021-philippines-defense-budget
The proposed 2016 national budget reserves a record P25 billion for defense spending
HAND-ME-DOWN. The Philippine Navy's most capable warship, BRP Ramon Alcaraz, is an excess defense article from the US Coast Guard. Rappler file photo Carmela Fonbuena/Rappler
The
The proposed 2016
national budget, which President Benigno Aquino III is to present to parliament
for approval on Monday, would reserve a record P25 billion (US$552 million) for
defense spending.
Funds would be
used to acquire navy frigates and patrol aircraft, budget and defense officials
told AFP.
"We need to
protect what is clearly within our territorial jurisdiction," Budget
Secretary Florencio Abad said when asked if the increase was due to the Philippines ' maritime row with China
"Certainly,
we need to at least be able to effectively monitor the developments in the
area, particularly those in disputed zones," he added.
Under the
P3-trillion-peso budget bill, defense spending would be up from a P20-billion
military budget last year and five times bigger than in 2013, the officials
said.
The proposed 2016
defense budget is part of a five-year P75-billion military modernization
program approved by Aquino in 2013, Abad said.
The amount would
still be dwarfed by China ,
which claims most of the South China Sea
including areas close to the shores of its Asian neighbours.
Modernization
catch-up
One of the
region's most poorly equipped, the Philippine military relies on half-century
old ships and aircraft keeping watch over the South China
Sea , where tensions have flared recently.
The Philippines
is catching up on military modernization after spending was held back to just
five billion pesos in 2013 as the government shifted resources to recovery from
Super Typhoon Haiyan, which struck the country that year leaving 7,350 people
dead or missing.
The Philippine
military's mission to protect the country's territory is complicated by
long-running communist and Muslim insurgencies that forces it to devote troops
and equipment for internal security.
While China has gone on an island-building frenzy to
reinforce its claims on South China Sea reefs and waters, the Philippines
The BRP Sierra
Madre, emblematic of the Philippine military, was deliberately grounded on
Second Thomas Shoal in 1995 in a desperate move to check China
The South China
Sea chain is also disputed in whole or in part by Brunei ,
Malaysia , Taiwan and Vietnam
"This budget
will allow us more latitude in acquiring new assets for the Armed Forces of the
Philippines
"We are
pushing hard on modernization and we will need all the help we can get.... This
includes the purchase of frigates and patrol aircraft," Andolong added.
Two of 12 fighter
jets that the Philippines
had bought from South Korea
A United
Nations-backed tribunal is expected to decide in months whether it has
jurisdiction over a Philippine petition to declare China
http://www.rappler.com/nation/100021-philippines-defense-budget