Despite improving ties with China, the Philippines will continue patrolling the West Philippine Sea and strengthening the islands under its control, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Thursday.
“We will still continue with our activities there. We will patrol regularly… [and] continue strengthening our islands. We have nine islands. The people at the Sierra Madre [a grounded landing ship] will still be there, and we will continue resupplying them and replacing them,” he said in a mix of Filipino and English.
The Defense chief added that the country will protest any action by the Chinese that are inconsistent with the Philippine national interest.
Part of the buildup, he said, would be better housing for troops on Pag-asa Island.
“We have allotted funds for the shelter of our troops because right now, they only have huts there. We should give them good shelters, barracks, especially in Pag-asa,” he added.
By the end of next year, he said, the runway on the island will have been repaired, and a beaching ramp was already 42 percent complete. The ramp will enable them to bring in the materials and equipment to repair the runway, he said.
At the same time, Lorenzana said two missile-armed frigates being built by South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries will be named the BRP Antonio Luna and BRP Jose Rizal.
Navy flag officer-in-command Vice Admiral Robert Empedrad said the construction of the frigates was going smoothly, and the ships would be delivered by February or March 2020.
The keel-laying for the first-missile-armed frigate took place last Oct. 16 in Ulsan, South Korea while the steel-cutting for the second ship took place last Sept. 17.
The Philippines and Hyundai signed a P16-billion contract for the two frigates, with P2 billion set aside for its weapon systems and munitions. The projected delivery date for the first frigate is 2020 and the second one is 2021.