THE Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) needs more multi-purpose drones for long-term precision operations, a defense official told the Senate on Monday, but this equipment would require a local facility for raw materials.
Secretary of National Defense Gilberto C. Teodoro, Jr. said the AFP has used all drones donated from the United States because of limited supply.
He noted that tactical drones are still useful, although long-term national defense requires multi-purpose drones.
Referencing the military modernization of South Korea, Mr. Teodoro said the Philippines needs to expand its basic industry, particularly raw materials and assembly.
South Korea’s military modernization began in 1976 when the United States withdrew its support from the country, he said. Mr. Teodoro, however, emphasized that the advancement of South Korea’s military industry was only possible because the basic industries for steel and electronics were already capable of supporting a sustainable ecosystem for defense.
“If we do not also remediate basic industry, for example, the raw materials, secondly power, we will be constrained to being an assembly location also reliant on importation for our outputs,” he said. — Francessca S. Abalos