AS THE country strengthens its defense ties with New Zealand, a helicopter frigate, the HMNZS Te Kaha, will be paying a goodwill and port visit to the Philippines from April 4 to 7.
Philippine Navy spokesperson Capt. Lued Lincua said the ship, skippered by Cmdr. Stephen John Lenik, would be docking at Pier 15, South Harbor in Manila.
Other ranking officials in the HMNZS Te Kaha include Commodore James Gilmour, New Zealand Maritime component head.
Lincuna said the visiting ship would be given the usual meeting point procedure off Corregidor Island by the BRP Rajah Humabon.
The Philippines and New Zealand held Bilateral Defense Talks last March 6, expressing their commitment in strengthening and deepening their defense ties.
This was emphasized by Department of National Defense Undersecretary Cardozo Luna during the Bilateral Defense Talks in Manila last March 6.
Present during the BDT were New Zealand Defense Minister Helen Quilter and Defense Undersecretary Cardozo Luna.
Both nations have a bilateral defense cooperation agreement signed in 2012.
During the meeting, Luna expressed his appreciation to New Zealand’s contribution in building up the capacity of Philippine defense forces even as he noted that bilateral relations were pursued within the ambit of multilateral platforms particularly the Asean Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus.
Quilter said New Zealand looked forward to working with the Philippines once more as co-chairman for 2017-2020 of the newly established ADMM-Plus Expert Working Group on Cyber Security.
She also recalled how the co-chairmanship of the Philippines and New Zealand in 2011-2014 of the ADMM-Plus EWG on Peacekeeping Operations resulted in productive undertakings that contributed in enhancing the capacity of ADMM-Plus members pursue peacekeeping operations.
Beyond assessing the current state of bilateral defense relations and exploring ways to move the relationship forward, both defense officials exchanged views on matters of common concern to include maritime security, the interactions of major powers in the Asia-Pacific and combating terrorism and violent extremism.
