PAF upgrading to address West Philippine Sea situation - Marcos

MANILA, Philippines — The government is “very serious” about upgrading the military as a “response to the growing complication of the situation” in the West Philippine Sea, according to President Marcos.

Speaking before members of the Philippine Air Force (PAF) in Clark, Pampanga last Friday, Marcos committed to provide the military with “all the tools” necessary for them to fulfill their mission.

“We are very serious in upgrading the capabilities, especially of the Air Force, as they constitute the first line of defense and with the situation that we are facing now over the West Philippine Sea,” he said.

He added that the government gets the “best information, the best intelligence” from the PAF.

“The modernization program of the Air Force, of the AFP, is certainly a response to the growing complication of the situation that we are facing in our region,” the Commander-in-Chief said, citing the escalating tension in the disputed waters.

“And unfortunately, we cannot say that this situation is cooling down. Perhaps, the best that we can hope for is to keep it as it is and, hopefully, continue to lessen the tension,” he added.

Marcos said the government is in full swing to do all it can to provide the AFP with the necessary tools and equipment to defend the country’s sovereignty.

“The administration is committed to the continuing modernization of our military, the continuing improvement of the capabilities of our men and women in the military and to giving all the tools that are necessary for you to fulfill your mission, for you to do the job that the rest of the Philippines, the rest of Filipinos are counting on, and that is to protect the republic,” he said.

The Department of Foreign Affairs earlier said the Philippine government is crafting guidelines on joint patrols in the West Philippine Sea.

The country is in talks to possibly include Australia and Japan in planned West Philippine Sea patrols with the US.

In an interview with CNN Philippines last Friday, United Kingdom Minister for Indo-Pacific Anne-Marie Trevelyan condemned the behavior and aggressive actions of the Chinese Coast Guard, whose vessels continue to loiter in the West Philippine Sea.