MANILA, Philippines - Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Italian Defense Minister Giampaolo Di Paola will sign an agreement aimed at fast-tracking the procurement of vital military equipment.
The agreement will be signed during the visit to Italy of Gazmin and other defense officials tasked to inspect military equipment.
“This arrangement will help expedite the procurement from the Italian defense industry suppliers with the help of our counterparts at the Italian Ministry of Defense,” Gazmin said in a statement.
Department of National Defense (DND) spokesman Peter Galvez, however, said the agreement does not mean that the Philippines has decided to buy equipment from Italian suppliers.
He said the agreement was crafted to speed up the procurement process in case the DND decides to acquire military tools from Italy.
The arrangement will be valid for five years from signing and be automatically extended for another five years unless there is a written notice of intention to terminate. Other details of the agreement were not available yesterday.
“Our primary goal is to explore all avenues for us to really address the needs of our defense establishment, in line with our established systems and procedures,” Gazmin said.
Some of the military hardware being considered for procurement under the agreement are medium lift aircraft, coast watch system radar, multi-role combat aircraft, and long-range patrol aircraft.
Gazmin said the arrangement would help implement the armed forces modernization program, which he described as “a primary thrust of the Aquino administration.”
He and other defense officials are now in Italy to inspect the defense equipment offered by Italian suppliers. They left the country last Saturday and are expected to be back on Friday.
Gazmin was accompanied by Defense Undersecretary for Finance, Munitions, Installations and Materiel Fernando Manalo, Bids and Awards Committee chairman Patrick Velez and other staff members.
The team will visit about 20 locations and companies, both government and private.
The Philippines has acquired 18 basic trainer aircraft from Alenia Aermacchi, an Italian firm known for designing and producing military trainers. All 18 units were delivered last year.
The DND aims to approve the contracts of 138 modernization projects worth P70 billion by July.
The projects include fighter jets and long-range patrol aircraft for the Philippine Air Force, multi-role vessel for the Navy and coast watch radars.
The DND has tapped former Armed Forces chief Victor Ibrado, former Navy chief Luisito Fernandez and former Air Force chief Willie Florendo as consultants for its acquisition system.
Most of the items would be acquired through government-to-government transactions. Others would be acquired through open and competitive bidding.
Aside from Italy, other countries that have offered military equipment to the Philippines are the United States, Korea, France, and the United Kingdom.