Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Voltaire
Gazmin has given President Benigno S. Aquino III very high marks for
jump-starting the military modernization program.
"President Benigno Aquino’s administration provided
unprecedented levels of funds to support the Armed Forces of the Philippines
(AFP)'s modernization with a sufficient defense budget made available through
good governance policies," he said during the Philippine-US 2+2
ministerial meeting held in Washington D.C. on Tuesday night (Philippine time).
Gazmin was referring to the acquisition of many new assets
for the AFP which include the South Korean FA-50PHs, AgustaWestland attack
AW-109E helicopters, Bell
According to the DND chief, having these assets on hand will
greatly enhance the capability of the AFP to defend and protect the country's
vast territories.
But despite these improvements, Gazmin is also keen to
strengthen the country's allegiance with the US
"Our security interests are becoming increasingly
intertwined. While we grapple with nontraditional security concerns and natural
man-made disasters, traditional security challenges, to include territorial and
maritime disputes, remain to be fundamental concerns," Gazmin pointed out.
"Given this strategic context, we should be in a
position to address such common concerns, as well as contribute to regional
peace and stability. It is worth it to note that in the – in pursuit of the
objective of enabling the Armed Forces of the Philippines not only to perform
our mandate to protect the state, but also to fulfill our obligation as an ally
and an active contributor to regional peace and stability," he added.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=846149
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.