Since President Benigno Aquino took office in mid-2010, the Philippines has acquired two former US Coast Guard cutters, three landing craft from Australia and South Korea and seven surplus UH-1H helicopters
The Philippines can only afford a “frugal” military upgrade, defense officials said Monday, even though maritime tensions with China are growing.
Despite a proposed 25 percent rise in next year’s defense budget, the government must still divide resources between external defense and internal threats like insurgencies and natural disasters, Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and other security officials added. Details