DND: Philippines has to boost defense spending
THE PHILIPPINES must catch up with its regional peers in defense spending to strengthen its military capabilities amid increasing geopolitical tensions, the country’s Defense chief told congressmen on Thursday.
“A peso delayed now [means] you have to pay P3 in the next year,” Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilbert C. Teodoro told the House committee in appropriations. “There is a race among countries in terms of strengthening their capacities in defending their own territories.”
The Defense department has been allotted a P233.97-billion budget for next year. The Defense secretary’s office will get P1.26 billion, while the general headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines will get P14.91 billion.
The Philippine Army was allotted P121.07 billion, the Philippine Navy will get P40.94 billion and the Philippine Air Force was earmarked P44.72 billion.
Party-list Rep. Raoul Danniel A. Manuel noted that the Defense department’s 2024 budget will increase by 12% compared with the 9.5% increase in the national budget.
Meanwhile, Mr. Teodoro said the agency allots a portion of its yearly budget to the maintenance of military bases under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) with the US. “Even though these are EDCA sites, we still continue to spend because these are Philippine bases,” he said.
Assistant Minority Leader and Party-list Rep. Arlene D. Brosas told the hearing P1 billion was tapped from the budget of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) modernization program to build the Mactan-Benito Ebuen Air Base in Cebu.
Mr. Teodoro said the air base is a fuel depot that costs about P111 million ($2 million). It is one of the first five EDCA sites the Philippines gave access to the US in 2014.
President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. in February gave the US access to four more military bases, and has ruled out the use of Philippine military bases to launch offensives.
The Defense chief said the US also spends on these bases apart from the capability assistance it provides provided the Philippine military passes security assessments. “The Americans provide aide and logistics assistance.”
Mr. Teodoro noted that only nine EDCA sites will get assistance from the US, and all other strategic bases are “totally Filipino.”
“Isn’t this contrary to the US pronouncements that they will fund the improvement and building of facilities in EDCA sites?” Ms. Brosas asked.
“We really need to [spend],” the Defense secretary said. “If not, then we lose our independence.”
He also said he could detail spending on EDCA sites in a closed-door hearing. Mr. Teodoro said there are no American troops stationed at EDCA sites now.
Mr. Teodoro also said the US is not involved in the Philippines’ defense budget planning.
China in March accused the US of worsening tensions by boosting military deployment in the Asia-Pacific region. It has ignored a 2016 ruling by a United Nations-backed arbitration court that voided its claim to more than 80% of the South China Sea based on a 1940s map.
China has released a 2023 version of its standard map featuring a 10-dash line. The Philippines, Vietnam, India and Taiwan have criticized the map. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
