The NMESIS and the United States' Renewed Commitment in Philippine Defense

At the turn of the new administration that is sitting in the United States government at the time of this writing, there are a mix of uncertainties among the alliances relating to the commitment that the world's sole superpower has in keeping the current world order, particularly against countries that are up to challenge it. For the Philippines, a deployment of a new weapons system gives an assurance on its 'ironclad alliance' with the former.

US SECRETARY OF DEFENSE'S VISIT TO THE COUNTRY

The deployment of the NEMESIS anti-ship missile system is an interesting development for the US-Philippine relations.
Image Source.

From March 27 through March 28, 2025, United States Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth visited the Philippines for an official visit, meeting with President Ferdinand R Marcos Jr and Secretary of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, as part of his Indo-Pacific visit involving United States territory of Guam, and other Indo-Pacific country of Japan. 

This is SECDEF Hegseth’s first visit to an Asian country in the official status of his position, aiming to advance defense and security goals with the key officials of the Philippine government.

His visit to the country has the assurance for an ironclad alliance between both countries in mind, signifying that the Philippines receive that needed continuous support amidst the uncertainties surrounding the practical nature of commitments and relationships of the United States' official foreign policy. 

The continuity of this commitment from the Biden administration to the present Trump 2.0 administration is a needed assurance that the Philippine authorities needed to hear from the current United States government.

This visit comes with interesting tidbits as to the type of support that the Philippine government, specifically the Armed Forces of the Philippines, will receive from the United States as the result from this renewed cooperation between both countries, and the expectations as to the things the Philippines will give as a return of investment from this burgeoning relations between both countries. The type of support provided comes on top of increased troop deployments and rotations by United States forces in the country.

One interesting tidbit highlighted and also the primary topic of discussion is the likely deployment of the United States military’s newest shore based anti-ship missile system, coming with an acronym “NMESIS” (pronounced ‘nemesis’), which stands for “Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System”. This system will have its debut deployment into the country in the 2025 Joint Exercise Balikatan, which will take place from April 21 up to May 9, 2025.

The debut deployment of the shore-based anti-ship missile system will go with its extended deployment of the country even after the 2025 Joint Exercise Balikatan gets concluded, going similarly with what the United States forces did with the Typhon Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile system deployed in the country. Both systems aforementioned will help the Philippine forces practice and share knowledge on the operations and other aspects of its usage and deployment.

Of course, its deployment always comes with deterrence in mind, as this has raised on an interview relating the effect that the NMESIS anti-ship missile system has for the overall Philippine defense deterrence, of which the response into the matter also encompass the greater aspects of the country’s deterrence, which includes the ‘ironclad’ alliance that the Philippines has with the United States, along with the current capabilities that the Armed Forces of the Philippines has, to date.

As the deployment of the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS gets highlighted in the aspects of the greater scope of current Philippine defense posture and its implication in the current order of the Indo-Pacific region, the discussion relating to this topic will delve primarily on the system’s development, geopolitical implications, and its specifications, giving a full picture that intertwines geopolitical and Philippine defense aspects of the system’s deployment in the country.

WEAPONS DEVELOPMENT

The NMESIS' missile munitions will be the Naval Strike Missile from Kongsberg, the same anti-ship missile found onboard United States Navy ships.
Image Source.

To understand better the development of the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS platform, it is worth to focus more on its munitions first, before focusing on other areas like its launcher and other relevant parts of the system. 

For starters, the munition the system has primarily composed of the Kongsberg-developed and produced Naval Strike Missile (NSM) system, originated in the Scandinavian country of Norway and is now a mainstay anti-ship missile munition of the United States Navy.

In Southeast Asia, the countries that will probably come up with the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) systems munition will be the southern neighboring countries of both Malaysia and Indonesia, whereby the former will use it to arm both of its Maharaja Lela-class Frigates (Littoral Combat Ships or LCS) and its older Lekiu-class Frigates, and the latter will use it to arm its Klewang-class Fast Attack Crafts. The Philippine Navy uses the South Korean SSM-700K Haeseong ‘C-Star’ anti-ship missile munition as its mainstay solution.

The missile system’s development started way back in the late 1980s, when Kongsberg started into conceptualization and addressing the limitations of Norway’s first indigenously made anti-ship missile, which is the Penguin anti-ship missile. It then undertook formalization into a full-scale development contract in 1996, costing at around US$100 Million and the timeframe expected to have at least six (6) years. Serial production of the missile then started on June 29, 2007.

For both the United States Navy and Marine Corps, the responsibility regarding the production of the Naval Strike Missile System lies with the country’s military defense firm Raytheon, which likely included the ones intended for the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS platforms deployed for the 2025 Balikatan Exercise purposes. As the missile munition’s details got discussed, let us now delve into the next part, which is on the missile launcher itself.

The missile launcher itself is a product made by a US-based defense company Oshkosh, named “ROGUE Fires Carrier”, itself derived from the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or JLTV, a multipurpose vehicle currently used by the United States Armed Forces that shares similar design to the M-ATV Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles or MRAP vehicles that the same defense company supplied to the Armed Forces. The similarity of its chassis eases the logistics chain on its mobility uses with the commonality of its spare parts bulk.

As for the JLTV’s chassis development, it started way back 2012 under the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle program pushed by a joint modernization partnership between the United States Army and the United States Marine Corps, designed to replace several of its aging High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle or HMMWV (colloquially known as the Humvee) vehicles. Since then, it has become the mainstay platform used by the said two (2) military branches of the United States Military.

With the details now provided on both the Naval Strike Missile and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) derived ROGUE Fires Carrier missile launcher, the next point on this discussion will now delve on its geopolitical uses that relates to the latest development on its deployment to the Philippines as part of the Joint Exercise Balikatan 2025, and how the extended deployment of the units in the country helps deter threats from a regional adversary like China.

GEOPOLITICAL IMPLICATIONS

Here is the potential site deployment of the NMESIS anti-ship platform during the Exercise Balikatan 2025.
From Orion Intel.

As the deployment of the NMESIS missile launcher units deployed in the country comes as part of the growing alliance between the United States and the Philippines, the actions taken always come with geopolitical implications in mind, particularly in the dynamics relating to the stability of the Indo-Pacific region at large. Of course, regional powers like China always come to mind, particularly to the areas in the country that the NMESIS will probably get deployed.

One likely location that the NMESIS platform gets deployed is in the area near Northern Luzon, particularly in the island group of Batanes, a Philippine province nearest to the island country of Taiwan that China desires to reunite under the communist red banner of the mainland. 

This is crucially important, as China has plans on blockading the said island country being part of its invasion purposes, with multiple drills already accomplished by the People’s Liberation Army as part of this worrying push.

Just the deployment of the Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) platforms in Batanes already undermines China’s own adventurism against Taiwan, particularly that securing the Bashi channel near Batanes will put any Chinese ships traversing in the area or the ones taking part in the blockading activities into harm. 

Still, the Philippine government has this deployment as merely part of the bilateral exercise between them and the United States, emphasizing more on interoperability drills.

Another detail to point on is how crucial the deployment of the NMESIS anti-ship platform is for the First Island Chain in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly with the goals of containing Chinese aggression into the waters off the coast. For context, the First Island Chain comprises countries of Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines, of which it stretches from the northern part of the Japanese territorial domain down to the Philippines’ southernmost part.

The interoperability that the NMESIS anti-ship platform might provide to the Philippine Armed Forces from their counterparts in the United States military might give insights for the former in the repair, maintenance, and operational aspects of the platform deployed by the latter, particularly for consideration into its purchase as the former currently embarks on its modernization program, aiming to provide the needed credible defense posture that the country needs for territorial defense purposes.

Ultimately, the extended deployment of the anti-ship missile system in the country will provide an increased deterrence for its own defense, in which it adds to the systems that the United States military has in the country, with the other being the strategically important deployment of the Typhon Mid-Range Capability (MRC) missile of the United States Army. Both systems deployed in the country showcase the Philippines’ importance as a strategic geographic location in the Indo-Pacific that can deter Chinese expansionism.

As the impact and geopolitical implication of the NMESIS anti-ship platform just covered as part of this entry, the next portion of this topic will now cover the specifications and other features of both the Kongsberg-made Naval Strike Missile (the munition onboard the anti-ship missile unit) and the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle derived ROGUE Fires Launcher, itself being an unmanned platform that relies primarily on the remote inputs of its operator, even on operations involving the launching of its missiles.

SYSTEM SPECIFICATIONS

Here are the main attributes of a Naval Strike Missile munition,  which is a primary armament of the NMESIS anti-ship platform. 
From Kongsberg, through this image source.

This topic will not be complete if not with the complete discussion about the system specification of what defines a Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS platform that the United States Armed Forces field throughout the Joint Exercise Balikatan 2025, and eventually going beyond that bilateral exercise phase. 

Once again, the discussion will cover two (2) parts, the missile munition, which is the Naval Strike Missile, and the unmanned launcher version of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or JLTV.

At a glance, the Naval Strike Missile has the following technical data based on what the presentation provided on the manufacturer’s website. Breaking it down, the Naval Strike Missile has a subsonic speed of Mach 0.7 to 0.9. 

For context, the supersonic BrahMos missile that the Philippine Marine Corps received and the Philippine Army aims to have, has the speed of at least Mach 2.0 to 2.8 (varying to the used cruising altitude), giving the latter an advantage related to this speed metric.

Despite having a subsonic speed, the Naval Strike Missile has the advantage of its maneuverability, as its capability in having an advanced sea-skimming maneuvers gives challenges to the opposition force’s onboard air defense system in intercepting this advanced munition. 

This thing similarly goes with the SSM-700K Haeseong ‘C-Star’ missiles found aboard both the Philippine Navy’s Jose Rizal-class and Miguel Malvar-class frigates, which actually has a speed of around Mach 0.85.

Adding information for the Naval Strike Missile, it has the weight of 407 kilograms or 897 lbs, a length of 3.96 meters or 156 inches, and a total range of around 185 kilometers to 250 kilometers. For comparison, the BrahMos missiles that the Philippine Marine Corps currently have come with a total range of around 290 kilometers, while the SSM-700K Haeseong 'C-Star' missile has a total estimated range of around 180 to 200 kilometers, at par with the said Kongsberg-developed product.

After talking about the Naval Strike Missile munition that the NMESIS anti-ship platform uses in eliminating its targets, the next component to discuss is the launcher platform and other parts of the system, especially with the chassis and features that considers as an unmanned variant of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle from Oshkosh. 

The ROGUE Fires Carrier is just one of the multiple variants of the design provided by Oshkosh, with its chassis shared with the MRAP variant widely used in the United States Military.

At a glance, the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle or the JLTV that the NMESIS launcher bases itself from has an operational range of 400 miles or at around 643.78 kilometers, on-road speed of 65 miles per hour or 104.61 kilometers per hour, and a maximum weight of around 15,500 lbs or 7,030.68 kilograms, or 7.031 metric tons. 

This means that the vehicle comes as light enough that it is transportable by any cargo aircraft that is likely serving both the United States and the Philippines, such as a C-130 Hercules aircraft.

The light portability of the ROGUE Fires Carrier, plus the firepower capability possessed by the Naval Strike Missile as an anti-ship munition, makes the NMESIS anti-ship platform a formidable system that comes as ideal for deployment into ideal chokepoints like the Bashi Channel, which comes as a crucial part of the containment under the First Island Chain. As part of an integrated network chain of military units, the system relies on inputs from other surveillance units for its targeting operations.

ENDING NOTE

A U.S. Marine Corps Navy-Marine Corps Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System assigned to Medium-Range Missile Battery, 3d Marine Littoral Combat Team, 3d Marine Littoral Regiment, 3d Marine Division is staged at Basco, Philippines, April 26, 2025.
United States Marine Corps Photo

Like the Typhon Mid-Range Capability Missile System that ever since deployed to the Philippines from 2024, the new Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System or NMESIS anti-ship platform come as strategic in its usage, as its design as a mobile, coastal-based anti-ship platform added up to the complex situation in the Indo-Pacific region, particularly relating into adding the deterrence in areas part of the First Island Chain like the Philippines.

Its deployment to the Philippines as part of the Joint Exercise Balikatan 2025 provides an opportunity to the troops of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, taking part in the activities to learn and to get an interesting insight into the operational and maintenance requirements of the NMESIS platform, which is helpful not only for interoperability of units among both the Philippine Military and its United States equivalent, but also on familiarity on its usage should the former opts for purchasing the system later on.

To recall, the NMESIS platform uses the Naval Strike Missile munition, which is a product from the Danish defense company Kongsberg and is currently a mainstream munition used by the United States Navy, replacing the older and legendary Harpoon missile system. 

This is different to both the BrahMos and SSM-700K Haeseong ‘C-Star’ anti-ship missile systems that the Philippine Marine Corps and the Philippine Navy, its parent unit, uses on its coastal-based and ship-based units, respectively.

And just like the Typhon Mid-Range Capability missile system deployed in the country since 2024, the NMESIS platform provides another layer of deterrence for the Philippines’ own defense under the alliance arrangement between the country and the United States, particularly that both countries have recently expanded its bilateral defense ties that correlates to the adding up of military sites provided under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement or EDCA.

The deployment of both advanced systems from the United States not only adds to the worry of the Chinese relating to its planned conquest of the island nation of Taiwan, but it also adds up to the dynamics of the geopolitical situation in the Indo-Pacific which, should they choose it, might put the deployment of the systems in the Philippines in consideration as another potential target. Such aggression puts the premise for the Philippines to tap other like-minded nations and alliances to establish deterrence.

Of course, the deployment of the US-made, coast-based anti-ship missile come as simply an ongoing development on the ever-improving defense ties between the Philippines and the United States, as the Philippine Military on its own has recently received another battery of BrahMos supersonic anti-ship missiles from India intended for the Philippine Marine Corps, and the Philippine Navy receives its first fully armed frigate, the BRP Miguel Malvar (FFG-06) that will get fit with its own SSM-700K anti-ship missiles later on.

In a final note, the deployment of the NMESIS anti-ship platform in a bilateral exercise with the Philippines is a sign of ever-growing bilateral defense relations that the country has with the United States, particularly in facing a geopolitical situation, with China aiming to dominate the affairs of the Indo-Pacific region. 

The Philippines play a crucial role in this ongoing situation, in which it can maximize its strategic location not only to the benefit of the alliance but also in improving its Armed Forces to new heights.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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Detailing the 2025 Philippine Coast Guard Budget

At the first weeks of the year 2025, the Philippine government, through the Department of Budget and Management or DBM, released the full details surrounding the General Appropriations Act for that year, and with that usually comes with the highlights surrounding the budget of the Department of National Defense, as in the case for outlets like this one.

In another quick discussion in this short-written entry, we will continue covering the 2025 budget relating to the country's national security purposes, only this time this will encompass the Philippine Coast Guard and projects under the Department of Transportation (DOTr) involving the West Philippine Sea.

DISCUSSION OVERVIEW

The Cessna C208CX Grand Caravan Aircraft is currently the mainstay fixed-wing aircraft of the Philippine Coast Guard.
Image Source.

The Philippine Coast Guard’s annual budget, just like those for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, always comes with an ongoing evolution, a focus primarily on its mandate for external defense and orientation to that phase of national security. 

Both budgets belong to the annually enacted General Appropriations Act, of which the 2025 iteration of the law got the signature of Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jnr on Rizal Day, December 30, 2024.

This article comes as the continuation of the discussions surrounding the 2025 General Appropriations Act, particularly pointing to its implications in relation to the current national defense efforts of the Philippine government, through the Department of National Defense and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. 

To recall, the Revised AFP Modernization Program received an important increase, although the bulk of its allotment aligns at Un-programmed Appropriations, depending on annual government revenue.

As the purpose of this writeup also delves in the country’s push and resolve on its territorial integrity, sovereignty, and national interest that encompasses beyond the scope of the core mandate of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the duties and responsibilities of the Philippine Coast Guard in the West Philippine Sea also plays a role that the country showed its presence and perseverance in what’s rightfully part of the Philippine Exclusive Economic Zone, even before a more powerful adversary.

With an increasing trend of China’s assertiveness in securing what they claim as ‘theirs’ through the use of their own coast guard, maritime militia, and even naval assets belonging to the People’s Liberation Army Navy at sea, the budget encompassing the Philippine Coast Guard and the projects that the Department of Transportation at-large in the West Philippine Sea are helpful in cementing the country’s interest in West Philippine Sea, securing its marine resources for the citizenry to benefit.

Coming as usual, this article will delve into the plans, programs, and projects presented under the 2025 General Appropriations Act for the Philippine Coast Guard, while relating to the ongoing developments and that the maritime law enforcement agency has at present, such as in purchasing additional white hull assets as part of its fleet expansion. This, coupled with new facilities getting constructed, aims to help the agency uphold its core mandate, especially in increased tensions in the West Philippine Sea.

THE PCG BUDGET IN THE 2025 NATIONAL EXPENDITURE PROGRAM

The budget breakdown of the Philippine Coast Guard's National Expenditure Program, spanning three (3) years.

At a glance, there is a positive trend in the overall allotments presented for the Philippine Coast Guard’s financial requirements under the 2025 National Expenditure Program, as it has highlighted the growing responsibility of the maritime law enforcement agency in enforcing its presence in areas like the West Philippine Sea, along with its efforts to expand its existing Maritime Domain Awareness in securing the Philippine Territorial and Exclusive Economic Zone waters.

The budget of the Philippine Coast Guard in the 2025 National Expenditure Program comes at around Php 31,268,928,000.00 or Php 31.268 Billion, in which it is higher than the 2024’s Php 29,420,681,000.00 or Php 29.421 Billion allotment in the presentation, which itself is higher than the 2023’s Php 21,908,100,000.00 or Php 21.908 Billion allotment. This means that there is at least a 6.39% increase in the 2025 budget, lower than the 25.54% increase in the 2024 proposal as compared to the 2023 budget proposal.

With the positive trend also comes the same picture on the specific expenditure clusters that describe an operational component of a government agency like the Philippine Coast Guard, whereby there’s a general increase on both Personnel Services (PS) and Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE), while there’s a general decrease on the maritime law enforcement’s Capital Outlay (CO) allotments as compared to the previous year. The breakdown of each expenditure cluster comes as follows.

The overall allotments for Personnel Services (PS) for basic salary and benefits for the Philippine Coast Guard’s uniform and civilian personnel composition comes at around Php 23,112,726,000.00 or Php 23.112 Billion, of which it comprise the largest percentage of the agency’s 2025 National Expenditure Program allotments that is at around 73.92% of the total budget allotted in this presentation. It is higher than 2024’s Php 19,739,399,000.00 or Php 19.739 Billion, and 2023’s Php 19,857,096,000.00 or Php 19.857 Billion.

Aside from Personnel Services or PS, another thing to point out is the composition of allotments under the Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses or MOOE, whereby it has the proposed figures under the National Expenditure Program for 2025 amounting to Php 7,086,919,000.00 or Php 7.086 Billion, composing about 22.66% of the total proposed budget in this presentation. It is higher than 2024’s Php 4,744,045,000.00 or Php 4.744 Billion, and 2023’s Php 3,571,565,000.00 or Php 3.572 Billion.

Completing this composition is the budget allotments under Capital Outlay or CO, whereby it saw a decrease in figures as compared to the first two (2) budgetary clusters, as discussed. For the year 2025, the figures provided under the National Expenditure Program of the said fiscal year amounts to Php 1,081,228,000.00, or Php 1.081 Billion, comprising only about 3.46% of the total budget. For comparison, figures for 2024 and 2023 are at around Php 4,744 Billion and Php 1.327 Billion, respectively.

The general increase of both Personnel Services (PS) and Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) sees as the ongoing increase on the number of hired personnel to the maritime law enforcement agency, along with the operational and repair requirements for the agency’s facilities and white hull vessels that is likely to receive in the succeeding years. While the National Expenditure Program provides the amounts as proposed at a glance, the 2025 General Appropriations Act gives a full picture.

THE ACTUAL BREAKDOWN UNDER THE 2025 GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT

Here is the actual breakdown of allotments for the Philippine Coast Guard under the 2025 General Appropriations Act.

As the budgetary figures provided under the 2025 National Expenditure Program comes as an initial and also a sneak peek into what will the budget of a certain government agency will look like, the 2025 General Appropriations Act provide as the final budgetary figure that a government agency like the Philippine Coast Guard will see as a basis for its allotment, which will be its budget to use for its personnel and operating expense requirements for the said fiscal period.

The budget of the Philippine Coast Guard in the 2025 General Appropriations Act comes at around Php 33,251,928,000.00 or Php 33.252 Billion, which is actually higher than the figures presented under the National Expenditure Program of the maritime law enforcement agency with the aforementioned figures provided in this writeup. This means that the budget of the Philippine Coast Guard saw an increase of Php 1,983,000,000.00 or Php 1.983 Billion.

Going further, the breakdown between the expenditure cluster goes as follows - Php 23,100,781,000.00 or Php 23.101 Billion for Personnel Services or PS, Php 7,086,919,000.00 or Php 7.087 Billion for Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses or MOOE, and Php 3,064,228,000.00 or Php 3.064 Billion for Capital Outlay or CO, totaling to the aforementioned figure that saw an increase as compared to the proposed ones under the National Expenditure Program.

This means that the budget for the Personnel Services comes with a minor decrease of Php 11,945,000.00, likely pointing to the number of personnel separating from the service through multiple means such as resignation, transfer of agency, reaching the mandatory age for retirement, or applying for the optional retirement package. Budgetary numbers provided usually correspond to the actual number of personnel in service, with data originating from the agency’s Human Resource directorate.

Meanwhile, there are no changes on the overall allotment to the Philippine Coast Guard’s own Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) requirements, which stayed at Php 7,086,919,000.00 or Php 7.087 Billion for both the 2025 National Expenditure Program and the 2025 General Appropriations Act. 

This means that their requirements for upkeep facilities and operating PCG equipment lines up into what should be their actual expenditure projections on the said fiscal period.

Finally, the Philippine Coast Guard’s Capital Outlay, under the 2025 General Appropriations Act, saw more than a twofold increase, as it saw the increase from Php 1,081,228,000.00 or Php 1.081 Billion in the 2025 National Expenditure Program increased into Php 3,064,228,000.00 or Php 3.064 Billion, with a difference being at Php 1,983,000,000.00 or Php 1.983 Billion. This will enable the agency to improve its capabilities by acquiring more hardware and building new facilities.

From the provided figures, the overall increase in allotments for the Philippine Coast Guard under the 2025 General Appropriations Act directly attributed to the increase in allotments under its Capital Outlay (CO) funding cluster, while there is a decrease and no change on the allotments of both the Personnel Services (PS) and Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE), respectively. 

Not mentioned here are the funding resources done through Official Development Aid or ODA loans, like the additional Teresa Magbanua class Multirole Response Vessels (MRRVs).

DOTR'S WEST PHILIPPINE SEA PROJECTS IN 2025

Pag-asa island now comes with a hangar and an air traffic control tower.
Screen grab from ABS-CBN News Channel.

As the Philippine Coast Guard falls under the organizational jurisdiction of the Department of Transportation or DOTR, it is as well worth discussing and delving with the projects that the transportation department have that has a relation with national security push, particularly on matters that correlates to the entire government’s push into cementing its presence in highly contested areas like the Kalayaan Island Group in the West Philippine Sea.

Based on the projects list provided by the 2025 General Appropriations Act for the earmarked programs set by the Department of Transportation or DOTR, one highlighted project on the list is the Airport Development and Expansion of Pag-Asa Island Airport (in Kalayaan Island Group), which amounts to Php 1,650,000,000.00, or Php 1.650 Billion Pesos. This budget is likely to provide continuous work on the airport facilities on the island, such as the air traffic control building and hangar facilities (see image above).

Another highlighted project is the Pag-Asa sheltered port project amounting to Php 300 Million, which refers to the dredged part of the island that can accommodate Philippine vessels of both civilian and government enforcement in nature, making it convenient to provide the much needed sustainment supplies for the troops and inhabitants of the island, along with an immediate deployment of heavy equipment and armaments that cement the country’s presence in an island part of the Kalayaan Island Group.

Finally, completing the list is the construction of Sheltered Port at Lawak Island, which is part of the Kalayaan Island Group municipality as the Pag-Asa island itself. Currently, the island, internationally named as Nanshan Island, comes with a small contingent of Philippine Coast Guard and Armed Forces personnel deployed in the area, and having a sheltered port in the island will help not only to cement the country’s presence but also to give added protection among Filipino fisherfolk during harsh storms.

Amounting to Php 1,080,000,000.00 or Php 1.080 Billion, the Phase 2 of the construction of a Sheltered Port at Lawak island is the continuation of what has already invested there, whereby an amount of Php 800,000,000.00 or Php 800 Million has already provided for the construction of the facility as part of the 2024 General Appropriations Act. Likewise, both the airport expansion and the sheltered port on Pag-Asa island are a mere continuation of the plans earmarked by the Transportation Department in prior years.

All the aforementioned projects aimed to improve not only the well-being of the troops and inhabitants within the Kalayaan Island Group in the West Philippine Sea, but it gives additional presence and resolve that the Philippine government and citizenry at-large provides attention and added support in protecting the country’s national interest and sovereign rights in the West Philippine Sea area, all of which are within bounds of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or UNCLOS.

Coupled with the current efforts by both the Philippine Coast Guard and the Armed Forces of the Philippines to improve their capabilities further for territorial defense purposes, the projects set by the Department of Transportation as mentioned play a vital role in providing support in further improving and fortifying the Philippine positions in the West Philippine Sea, all despite having incursions from both the China Coast Guard together with accompanying Chinese Maritime Militia ships.

LOOKING FORWARD

A scale model of the HDP-500 OPV as presented by HD Hyundai during the ADAS 2024 Exhibition.
File Image.

The budget of the Philippine Coast Guard in the 2025 General Appropriations Act, as opposed to its proposals under the 2025 National Expenditure Program, shows that the budget allotment increase, especially on its Capital Outlay related expenditures, are helpful for the maritime law enforcement agency under the Department of Transportation to further fulfill its mandate, especially that it plays a crucial role as the current frontline component in challenging Chinese elements in the West Philippine Sea.

The increase fully reflects the general trend on its budgetary requirements, all of which saw a constant increase on its needed budget allotments through encompassing years mentioned in the first parts of this writeup. 

The trend as presented is not that surprising, given that there is also a general increase of white hulls entering the service, along with the establishment of new facilities and recruiting the pool of aspiring applicants that wanted to join the service.

As mentioned earlier on the detailed breakdown of the expenditure cluster of the Philippine Coast Guard’s own budget, the numbers do not cover any soft loan or similarly arranged scheme that correlates to the agency’s improvement of its own capabilities, particularly to the recent purchase of Japanese-made Multirole Response Vessels and additional Teresa Magbanua-class MRRVs, all of which having the JICA Official Development Aid loan as the source of funds.

Adding to this is the ensured continuity with the ongoing rehabilitation and facility improvement projects in various Philippine outposts in the West Philippine Sea that is currently defined as part of the Kalayaan Island Group municipality of the Province of Palawan. Pag-Asa island’s current improvement of both of its airport and sheltered port emphasizes the importance of those facilities that increase the flow of logistics on goods, supplies, and much-needed goods from the Philippine mainland.

Aside from Pag-Asa island, the improvement in Lawak island, which is another Philippine outpost in the West Philippine Sea and as part of Kalayaan Island Group, also gives expanded presence for the country’s resolve in ensuring its national interest within its designated Exclusive Economic Zone or EEZ, whereby the national government sees its importance that the said projects have included in the 2025 budget of the Department of Transportation that also benefiting the country’s defense prospects.

The role of the Philippine Coast Guard, along with the budgets allocated by the Department of Transportation in the West Philippine Sea projects, shows that the country’s national defense efforts encompass the national government at-large, and not just the ones in the front-lines like the Armed Forces of the Philippines. 

The support among government agencies ensures that territorial integrity also comes with improving presence by providing better infrastructure for the assigned outposts to benefit.

Ultimately, the whole of nation approach in deterring the encroachment of a regional superpower in the country’s doorstep will come as a welcoming way forward in ensuring that the country’s citizenry and national interest will benefit, while making sure that the country is safe from threats that are now involving multiple domains, as the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines mentions. As a country, the Philippines, with its citizens being united, stands against aggression posed against its own sovereignty.

To access the following documents, here are the following links below.

1. GAA 2025 - Philippine Coast Guard, under Volume 1-B, Chapter XXVI (archived).

2. GAA 2025 - Department of Transportation (Office of the Secretary), under Volume 1-B, Chapter XXVI (archived).

Here is an archived version of Volume 1-B webpage of the Department of Budget and Management or DBM.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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Forging the Philippine Local Defense Industry (SRDP and R.A. 12024)

A country usually comes with a decent armed force that implements its national policy of preserving the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its domain, while ensuring the best interest of its citizenry by securing the entire nation's land, sea, and air domain against multiple threats. And with this usually comes with investment into securing sophisticated and effective military hardware that comes from other countries that help developed and produce these tools, with instances adhering to the specifications of a military end-user.

And as the military capabilities grow, so does the desire of securing the materiel supply chain, going to the rationale that the country has its own defense industry that produces the tools that its own armed forces require. The Philippines has provided that significant step of improving its own defense industry through this important piece of legislation that will make it possible.

AS REPORTED IN THE NEWS

The assembly of the ninth (9th) Acero-class (Shaldag V) Fast Attack Interdiction Craft come as part of the Philippines' desire for Self Reliance Defense Posture.
Image screen grab from Naval Sea Systems Command video.

Self-reliance is a key for a country to improve and enhance its armed forces, without relying too much on alliances and suppliers originated from foreign countries for its defense, as the responsibility of the national government to foster and improve its local defense industry not only gives the country its capacity to sustain its logistical and production requirements in an event of a conflict, but also in bolstering its economy should its defense industry opts to export military hardware later on. 

This is the aim of the newly enacted Republic Act 12024 or the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act, of which President Ferdinand R Marcos Jnr signed the legislation into an actual law on October 8, 2024. 

At a glance, this encourages the country to produce its military hardware of various types, supporting the Armed Forces of the Philippines with locally made weaponry, and revitalizing the country’s defense industry that contributes to its overall economic development.

The effort itself will probably face its hurdles, specifically that the Philippines itself does not have a matured industry that can produce advanced weaponry, or a defense industry that goes beyond the manufacturing of firearms and ammunition like the ones that a local company like Armscor Global Defense (formerly Arms Corporation of the Philippines) does on its core business portfolio. The law itself, from this point on, serves as a foundation for the defense industry's development.

Apparently, the enactment of the law gives preference to local companies like Armscor Global Defense in procuring military hardware, with the SRDP Revitalization Act being a complementary law to the other newly enacted legislation, which is the New Government Procurement Act (NGPA) or the Republic Act 12009. As the Revised AFP Modernization Program, under the Republic Act 10349, sets into motion, there is a likelihood of local companies expressing their interest in joining this new type of industry.

Given that setting up the country’s defense industry is relatively new in the Philippine economy, it might be the chance for local industries to forge partnerships with foreign defense partners in setting up local production facilities in the country, taking the advantage of the law’s preference on locally made military hardware and materiel that the Armed Forces of the Philippines and other relevant agencies needs in their respective duties and responsibilities.

On this topic, the discussion will delve more on the key salient points of the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act, along with the reported developments that revolve around the increasing defense relationships that the Philippines have with other like-minded countries that might have this type of partnership in mind. This comes as the country’s defense capabilities are needing a boost amidst an increasing aggression by the red country in the Indo-Pacific Region.

The first point provides a summarized writeup regarding the provisions and technicalities that have included in the law, providing an insight as to the type and scope of how and what will the Philippine defense industry might look like in the succeeding years, along with perks and benefits that might have benefit any business entity that sees interest in taking part within this industry, while boosting the country’s economy that produces additional jobs for the citizenry to join and contribute in the nation’s overall development.

KEY SALIENT POINTS

The Philippine Navy's Multipurpose Attack Crafts (MPACs) counts as locally produced vessels from Propmech, in partnership with a Taiwanese entity.
File Image.

The Republic Act 12014 or the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act introduced measures and guidelines that will help develop and enhance the local Philippine defense industry, particularly with the salient provisions that have come with the legislation and enactment of this law for implementation. 

Each of the provisions at hand comes with a range of benefits and organizational structures in hand, all aiming to have a guiding principle for the country to develop and mature its own defense production.

First key salient point is the establishment of the Office of the Undersecretary for Defense Technology Research and Industry Development or ‘DTRID’ under Sections 4 and 5, an attached unit within the Department of National Defense that has the responsibility to the full implementation of the Republic Act 12014, and the compliance of any deals, plans, programs, and development partnerships under the Self Reliance Defense Posture arrangement. More emphasis on this office’s scope on the next sub-topic.

The second key salient point is on the National Defense Industry under Section 6 of the law, of which it clearly expresses the government’s role in supporting and developing the country’s defense industry with the following provisions, such as giving local companies preference on both procurement and technical support on research and development, together with securing foreign-sourced materials if the same is not available in the country. This provision and the next one emphasize the need for tech transfers.

The next provision, under Section 7 of the law, points to the Self-Reliance Defense Posture program itself, of which the promotion of the technology transfer gets highly emphasized, along with the development and securing the country’s access on resilient supply chains of highly essential and critical technologies necessary for its defense industry to flourish. Development and modernization of government arsenal, military bases, camps, and shipyards, come included in this law as a complementary measure, compatible with the measures and provisions of the Revised AFP Modernization Program or R.A. 10349.

This means that private entities, particularly with foreign technologies not available in the country, might go into development partnerships later on, effectively providing technology transfer that enables these local companies to supply the same to the end-user like the Department of National Defense, using local production facilities and Filipino workforce to accomplish a defense materiel contract while contributing to the economic well-being of this employed workforce and the economy at-large.

There are more provisions on this law that might help the country develop its own technology, through the Section 9 or the Development of Technology and Systems to Counter Unconventional Threats that address CBRNE and cybersecurity matters, Section 10 that addresses emerging advanced technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced military equipment, and Section 11 for securing military and defense-related technology patents through the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) property lane.

In the salient points presented come the required guidelines that enable the efforts of establishing and improving the Self Reliance Defense Posture or SRDP efforts of the government even more significant, particularly with the interest groups and current bilateral defense relationships that the Philippine government has with other countries might enable to give a bit of support, particularly in areas that will help improve the capabilities of the Philippine Armed Forces and the local defense industry at-large.

DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH AND INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT (DTRID) OFFICE

At one point, Austal shipbuilding promoted its Offshore Patrol Vessels with local production perks, which should be an advantage for Self Reliance Defense Posture efforts.
From Austal.

One crucial provision for enforcing the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act is the establishment of the Defense Technology Research and Industry Development or DTRID Office, itself being a unit under the Department of National Defense. At a glance, this will probably be the Philippine equivalent to the South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration or DAPA, or the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency or DARPA.

Responsible to the enforcement and monitoring of its application in military and defense-related industrial development, the Office of the Undersecretary of the DTRID, under the Section 5 of the law, has the function that ranges from adopting a defense policy in establishing defense stockpiles to sustain defense operations during the state of emergency which is pertaining to storing ammunitions (Section 5-A), to an advisory recommendation on policies dealing with the National Defense Industry (Section 5-H).

One important highlight of the office’s duties and responsibilities as stipulated in the law’s own provisions is the promotion of having Technology Transfer for local industrial production purposes. This means that any acquisition project that the Philippine military pushes in the upcoming years under the Revised AFP Modernization Program might need this provision that prompts foreign suppliers to comply, which is ideal if the deal comes with bulk orders that takes the economies of scale into consideration.

As a formulator and implementer of the policies within the scope of the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act, the DTRID office will be the one who will craft and implement the Implementing Rules and Regulations or IRR of this law, providing the sets of guidelines and provisions that will set direction and limitation for any future defense industrial development that may partake for the country’s burgeoning defense acquisition and industrial efforts.

Of course, the guidelines set by the Office of the Undersecretary of the Defense Technology Research And Industry Development will need to align with other established laws, such as the Republic Act No. 11293 or the "Philippine Innovation Act," along with the provisions set under the Revised AFP Modernization Program or the Republic Act No. 10349 as part of its ongoing efforts to modernize and enhance its overall capabilities into the current standards.

Aside from promoting Tech Transfers and partnerships on research and development, DTRID also promotes the idea of exporting locally made materiel overseas, especially if the Philippine Defense Industry itself gets matured through time through the full supervision and monitoring of the office. 

While the idea is currently far-fetched from the time this writeup gets published, the guidelines provided give precedent that enables the future Philippine Defense Industry to get a significant portion of the global defense market.

With the establishment of the Defense Technology Research and Industry Development Office as an attached unit of the Department of National Defense, the Self-Reliance Defense Posture efforts will now have an office that oversees, monitors, and promotes the local production, research, development, and eventually the export of defense materiel made in the Philippines, while nourishing and improving the Philippine Defense Industry as one key field of the country’s economy, alongside agriculture and office services.

SRDP ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND PROPOSALS

Isuzu Philippines, F. Cura Industries, and FMC Motors, will provide locally produced light carriers for the Philippine Army's own requirements. 
Image from Overland Kings, Instagram.

In this portion of the article that discusses the Self Reliance Defense Posture efforts of the Philippine government through the Department of National Defense regarding the country’s local production of military hardware intended to the Armed Forces of the Philippines and other relevant agencies, the points will delve more on the recent accomplishments, reports, plans, and programs that aims to achieve the vision that the Republic Act 12024 tries to achieve.

One recent development is the presentation of a Troop Carrier Light Truck concept likely for the Philippine Army’s use, of which the winning bidder for this project is a partnership of local business entities between Isuzu Philippines, FMC Trucks, and F. Cura Industries. 

There is a likelihood that under the new SRDP law, this partnership will get the preferential treatment in awarding of contracts, which will help the Armed Forces of the Philippines improve its capabilities with locally produced military materiel.

The advantage of securing orders from local business entities like the partnership aforementioned is with the readiness and availability of spare parts for the continuous repair and maintenance support of the military hardware such as a local Troop Carrier Light Truck derived from Isuzu’s N-series of trucks, in which all of its components can get locally sourced, with commonality shared with the civilian version of the trucks commonly seen traversing on Philippine roads.

Another development relating to Self Reliance Defense Posture efforts is on the local production and assembly of the Acero-class Fast Attack Interdiction Crafts - Missile (FAIC-M) vessels of the Philippine Navy, whereby the final units produced under the first batch got locally produced in the service branch’s Cavite Yard. There is a likelihood that the plans for the next batch of the Israeli-developed fast attack interdiction crafts will also have its production done in the country.

The local production of the Philippine Navy’s Acero-class Fast Attack Interdiction Crafts - Missile (FAIC-M) vessels, of which being the country’s derivative of the Shaldag V patrol vessels marketed by Israel Shipyards Limited, come as one of an excellent example for the country’s Self Reliance Defense Posture efforts, of which the contract for the first batch of vessels come with the provision for the Technology Transfer that enabled the Cavite Yard arrangements on production and assembly of future FAIC-M vessel orders.

Another example is with the Philippine Aerospace Development Corporation or PADC, whereby they locally assemble the RV-10 and RV-12 aircraft, primarily catering to local flying schools that will hone local pilots into having the skills in flying, taking off, and landing an aircraft. 

With this development, there is the likelihood that this might expand into providing the same to government agencies like the Philippine Armed Forces and the Philippine Coast Guard, both to train their pilots and for extra surveillance operations.

The three (3) presented examples are a clear evidence of an ongoing effort related to the Self Reliance Defense Posture or SRDP, especially now that the law related to this posture has now enacted and will probably receive added support in the upcoming years along with the ongoing efforts relating to the Revised AFP Modernization Program. This means that the overall push to have a matured Philippine Defense Industry is in the right direction, eventually helping the Philippine military source its hardware locally.

LOOKING FORWARD

The BRP Tagbanua LC-296 (image above) is a locally produced Philippine Navy ship.
(c) Philippine Fleet.

Upon the enactment of the Self Reliance Defense Posture Revitalization Act or the Republic Act 12024, the Philippine Defense Industry sees a chance to have a head start with the law being its foundation, which will eventually promote and fostering the local research, development, and production of military materials that is proudly made in the Philippines. It aims to improve the country’s military capabilities, while bolstering a portion of its economy and providing sufficient jobs to the local citizenry.

Local Philippine firms and joint development partnerships are sprouting from the prospect of improving the country’s own defense industry, where countries like Japan aims to establish a comprehensive framework that not only enables them to export military materiel to the Philippines to improve the capabilities of the country’s armed forces, but also in helping the country improving its defense industry, addressing the limitations stipulated by Japan’s law on defense exports.

As the law complements the guidelines and provisions pushed by both the Revised AFP Modernization Program or the Republic Act 10349, and the New Government Procurement Act or the Republic Act 12009, there might be a likely trend that the future acquisition projects of each branch belonging to the Armed Forces of the Philippines will include provisions that mentions Technology Transfer or local production of military hardware, both are primary aims of the newly enacted law.

With the preference pointing to local companies, this might encourage other local firms to secure a joint venture with foreign defense entities to secure a contract with the Armed Forces of the Philippines at a certain project, both aiming to get the needed tools and materiel that the country has, while the locally sourced one's gets integrated on the final product that a local company makes according to the specifications as part of the requirements pushed by the end-user.

Through the years, the Philippines always has the potential to foster and improve its Self Reliance Defense Posture even before the enactment that will set this effort into an official government policy, especially with the endeavors accomplished by various local entities in the past. 

One notable example was with the Philippine Aerospace Development Corporation’s license production of Norman Britten Islander Aircraft for various government entities like the Philippine Coast Guard.

Then there’s the recent accomplishment that have not mentioned in this writeup that will add to the displayed potential for an improved and matured Philippine Defense Industry, such as the Philippine Navy’s BUHAWI Project for an automated gun mount or a Remote-Controlled Weapons System or RCWS, or the success brought by production of the largest locally produced naval asset that serves the service branch to date, which is the BRP Tagbanua (LC-296, see image above).

Ultimately, the enactment of the Republic Act 12024 provides a promising future for the efforts revolving around the Self Reliance Defense Posture as pushed by the Department of National Defense, as a growing Philippine Defense Industry will decrease the country’s reliance from importing foreign-made military hardware in the country, while assuring its tip-top shape performance with a robust facility on maintaining and repair the purchased platforms, while having an ensured logistics chain of its own.

(c) 2025 PDA.

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