MANILA, Philippines — The country's defense spending has been on a steady rise since the 1990s, with a 25-percent leap eyed next year.
The proposed P25-billion defense budget in 2016 is part of a five-year military modernization program gearing to project a modern military with minimum credible defense and to make the Philippines a worthy member of security alliances.
Data recently obtained by The STAR showed that 55 military upgrade projects worth P11.71 billion have been completed under the Aquino administration. These include:
Based on a report by The STAR / Alexis Romero; Infographics by Philstar.com / Jonathan Asuncion
A total of P90.86 billion is needed to bankroll the military's upgrade program until 2017.
Last week, the Philippine Navy christened two brand new weaponized AugustaWestlend AW109 helicopters for deployment on board its Pilar-class frigates.
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