PHL sends supplies to troops, residents at disputed Pag-asa Island

From GMA News (Aug 23): PHL sends supplies to troops, residents at disputed Pag-asa Island 

Supplies have been delivered anew for Air Force and Navy personnel stationed at the disputed Pag-asa Island, as well as to civilians living in the area.

According to Cmdr. Armand Balilo, spokesman of the Philippine Coast Guard, the resupply for troops there was conducted on Sunday via BRP Batangas.

Balilo said the ship carried supplies "for our fellow Filipinos living" in the island, as well as clothes, rice, canned goods, and other grocery items for Air Force and Navy personnel.

The resupply also included drums of gasoline, a boat engine, and gallons of paint.

Eight Coast Guard personnel were also sent during the resupply trip to replace eight other officers in the area.

BRP Batangas also took to the island officials and employees of Kalayaan town, who are based in Puerto Princesa, Palawan.

According to Rear Adm. Ronald Joseph Mercado, Armed Forces of the Philippines Western Command chief, this was not the first time the troops were resupplied since the Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in favor of the Philippines in a case it filed against China.

The PCA ruling debunked China's nine-dash claim in the South China Sea, which affected the Spratlys Island, also known as the Kalayaan Island Group.

Mercado said the Coast Guard will help the Navy in rotation and resupply in the area.

Defense and military officials declined to reveal the exact number of troops at Pag-asa and other disputed areas in Spratlys Islands "for security reasons." 

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/578679/news/nation/phl-sends-supplies-to-troops-residents-at-disputed-pag-asa-island