AFP: No approval needed for resupply, rotation missions in WPS

From the Philippine News Agency (Jan 30, 2024): AFP: No approval needed for resupply, rotation missions in WPS (By Priam Nepomuceno)

HARASSMENT. A China Coast Guard vessel trains its water cannon on a Philippine Coast Guard vessel escorting military boats on Aug. 5, 2023. The boats were delivering food, water, fuel and other supplies to troops stationed at BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal. (Photo courtesy of PCG)

MANILA – The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Monday said it does not need permission from any country to conduct rotation and resupply (RORE) for its troops deployed at the BRP Sierra Madre (LS-57) in Ayungin Shoal.

Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, in an interview in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City, said the RORE is a regular military duty and can be conducted anytime.

Padilla added that it is the mission of the AFP to give its troops the required provisions for their morale and welfare and will continue to do so in coordination with other agencies.

"We do not actually need any permission from any country for us to do so," Padilla noted.

Reports earlier claimed that the China Coast Guard made a "temporary special arrangement" to allow the Philippines to deliver supplies to its troops manning the BRP Sierra Madre.

A RORE mission was earlier postponed due to some "technical difficulties" with one of the ships tasked for the mission.

https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1217800