Following new basing agreement, Berger hosts Philippines Marine Corps chief

 Posted to Breaking Defense Indo-Pacific (Feb 28, 2023): Following new basing agreement, Berger hosts Philippines Marine Corps chief (By JUSTIN KATZ)

Maj. Gen. Charlton Sean Gaerlan will spend several days in the US with Gen. David Berger.



U.S. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger receives an honors ceremony from the Philippine Marine Corps Commandant, Maj. Gen. Charlton Sean Gaerlan, at Philippine Marine Corps Headquarters, Manila. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Kathryn Adams)

WASHINGTON — Off the heels of a bilateral announcement to expand basing access in the Philippines, the commandant of the US Marine Corps is hosting his counterpart, Maj. Gen. Charlton Sean Gaerlan, in the US this week.

The US and the Philippines in early February announced plans to “accelerate the full implementation” of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, effectively giving the Pentagon access to four additional bases in the country.

Today, Gen. David Berger began hosting Gaerlan, who became the commandant of the Philippines’ Marine Corps in August, at Marine Barracks Washington for an honors ceremony. The visit comes at a time when both services find themselves in a position of needing to learn from their counterparts.

“They move comfortably between pieces of land and through the water because — this is just natural for them. But for us, the [Marine] Littoral Regiment, this is what they have to learn to do,” said Berger, referencing the new unit type established by Force Design 2030. “So, we’re learning from them. How do you maneuver? How do you move your forces between islands comfortably and it’s something that they are teaching us.”

That kind of island hopping is exactly what Berger has been aiming to prepare his service for through both the formation of the Marine Littoral Regiments as well as the development of a new warship, dubbed the Landing Ship Medium. The US Marines anticipate receiving an experimental ship, dubbed a Stern Landing Vessel, in March with plans to use it to fully develop the requirements for the Landing Ship Medium.

For the Philippines Marine Corps, that service is also establishing a new unit type, a Coastal Defense Regiment. The purpose of the new regiment is to begin shifting the force away from the counterinsurgency operations that have occupied its attention since its inception in the 1950s and move it towards what Gaerlan called “territorial defense.”

“For the Coastal Defense Regiment, it’s very new, and a lot of our equipment are still arriving,” said Gaerlan. “That’s why what we’re doing now is we’re sending our Marines for training, especially with the US Marine Corps, and some of the tactics and procedures are being observed, especially during exercises like Balikatan.”

“Balikatan” refers to one of the most prominent annual military exercises conducted jointly between the US and the Philippines.

In September, shortly after becoming the Philippines Marine Corps’ chief, Gaerlan hosted Berger for a visit in Manila. Gaerlan described that visit as one of “continuing the relationship” in light of other events that had been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

“And it was also during the [September visit] that a lot of new ideas were presented. And during this year, we had already meetings with Marine Forces Pacific,” he added.

https://breakingdefense.com/2023/02/following-new-basing-agreement-berger-hosts-philippines-marine-corps-chief/