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Ambassadors of European Union Member-States in the Philippines Visit Navy Base

The Ambassadors of EU member-states in the Philippines led by H.E. Ambassador Luc Véron, visited the Philippine Navy’s Naval Operating Base in Subic, and were warmly welcomed by the base commander LT COL Ferdinand Foronda. The dignitaries also received a briefing on-site. The Ambassadors reiterated the EU’s commitment to a secure, free, and open maritime supply routes in the Indo-Pacific,…


Philippine-U.S. and Philippine-Australian Exercises Combine: Sama Sama-Lumbas

Military personnel from the Philippines, United States, Australia, France, Japan, and United Kingdom kicked off exercise Sama Sama-Lumbas in Cebu, Philippines on 11-October-2022. Sama Sama is an annual bilateral navy-to-navy exercise between the Philippine Navy (PN) and the U.S. Navy (USN), while Lumbas is a yearly bilateral navy-to-navy exercise between PN and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). This is the…



PN Reservist – A Life of Sacrifice and Commitment And It’s All Worth It

Many, up to now, refer to AFP Reservists as “Reservist lang” by which they mean we are not part, or of a lower class compared with the regular force counterpart. They seem to think that we do not share the same “courage” and “heroism” as with a regular soldier, when the time comes for an actual battle to call on…


A Brief Historical Backgrounder on PHILIPPINES-INDONESIA Military Relations

THE BEGINNINGS On 21-June-1951, a Treaty of Friendship between the Philippines and Indonesia was signed during the administration of President Elpidio R Quirino. Seven years later, the pillars were strengthened with the signing of the Cultural Agreement between the two countries on 29-April-1959 during the term of President Carlos P Garcia, two significant accords that would pave the way for…


Oath-Taking of Maritime League’s New Members and Trustees

On 23-June-2022, the Maritime League held its first face-to-face conference after the Covid-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021, at the SMX Mall of Asia during the PHILMARINE 2022 Convention. The new members of the Maritime League were inducted by its Chairman and President Admiral Eduardo Ma R Santos AFP (Ret). In attendance were COL Ricardo D Petrola PN(M), John Ivar…


Advance Naval ROTC Students Board PH Navy’s BRP Gregorio Del Pilar

BRP Gregorio Del Pilar (PS15) conducted shipboard familiarization and tour to 86 Advance Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) students who hailed from various parts of the country currently taking-up the Naval Science 43 (NS43) administered by the Naval Reserve Command Training Center (NRCTC) on 8-August-2022. The NS43 students were introduced to various shipboard equipment and spaces as well as…


Doctrine and Circular of Requirements in Warship Design

INTRODUCTION This article features some details for discussion on how to determine the design a fighting ship capable for credible defense during high intensity conflict at the contested sea areas of our territorial seas. The foregoing explains how fighting credibility and combat reputation can be achieved by a warship by evaluating and using certain tools of information whether the ship…


PH-US conduct Marine Aviation Support Activity 2022

CAMP AGUINALDO, Quezon City–The Armed Forces of the Philippines through the Philippine Marine Corps  (PMC) and the United States Marine Corps (USMC) Forces Pacific opened the Marine Aviation Support Activity 2022 (MASA 22) on 6-June-2022 at the PMC headquarters in Taguig City. Activities commenced on 6-June-2022 in the province of Palawan which includes combined joint forward arming and refueling demonstration,…


Preparation for the Proposed New Naval Forward Operating Base Facing the Pacific

01-March-2022, Bagamanoc, Catanduanes – CAPTAIN SALVADOR G LAVAPIE JR PN(GSC), Chairman, Technical Working Group (TWG) Forward Operating Base (FOB) Catanduanes and Commander, Naval Task Force – 31 (NTF-31), paid a courtesy call to Catanduanes Governor, Hon. Joseph Chua Cua on 01 March 2022. The courtesy call is in connection with the proposed construction of a Forward Operating Base (FOB) for…


MARINES Facilitate the Surrender of 10 ASG Members and Supporters in Sulu

A total of ten (10) individuals surrendered to government authorities in Seit Lake, Poblacion l, Panamao Sulu on 23-April-2021. According to reports, of the ten (10) individuals, four (4) were identified to be regular members of the terrorist group under ASG sub-leader SABSIBAR BENCIO, and the others were ASG supporters, who are identified as: Marisa Marajan 35 years old, wife…


Preparing for the Worst

The worrisome situation that continues to intensify across the Indo-Pacific theater – India-China border, Taiwan Straits, East China Sea, South China Sea – is subverting diplomatic efforts to restore peace and order, and escalating the prospects of an armed conflict due to clashing core interests of the great powers between China and the US. While our interdependent foreign policy seeks…


Hamilton Class Weather High Endurance Cutter (WHEC) – Proven Suitability for the Missions of both Coast Guard and Navy

History The Hamilton WHEC was constructed beginning in the 1960s, and they were intended to fulfill both Coast Guard peacetime and wartime requirements, and serve alongside the Navy. During the Vietnam War, several types of vessels supported the “Operation Market Time,” provided patrol duties, boarding and inspection of North Vietnamese vessels and boats, conducted naval gunfire support, missions, and medical…


Strengthening our Inter-Agency Cooperation to protect our National Interests

Introduction. The lack of maritime domain awareness and lack of expertise among countries in managing their maritime domain has allowed proliferation of lawlessness and crime on the seas. Organized crime and terrorism have become interconnected and more complex. A Philippine flag flutters from BRP Sierra Madre, a dilapidated Philippine Navy ship that has run aground since 1999 and became a…


Some Notes on the Inter-Organizational Coordination

Early this year, a joint team of the Bureau of Customs (BUCUS) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) apprehended a Chinese dredger “MV Zhonhai 68” for illegal and unauthorized presence in Philippine waters. Carrying a Sierra Leone flag and operated by Malaysian-registered HK Weifeng Hangyu Co. Ltd., the vessel was cleared by Cagayan Province authorities to leave the country more…


AMENDING THE NATIONAL DEFENSE ACT [NDA]: PHILIPPINE NAVY

In his inaugural speech as FOIC PN, VADM Giovanni Carlo J Bacordo highlighted 3 priority programs, namely: boost the capacity of the Naval Sea Systems Command; implement skills specialization for its personnel; and lastly, to modernize the mindset of every sailor and marine.[1] In this connection, Commander Jay Tristan Tarriela PCG, in an article at the Diplomat, averred that until…


PCG holds sailing demonstration of BRP Gabriela Silang in Manila Bay

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) held a sailing demonstration of the BRP Gabriela Silang (OPV-8301) at the vicinity waters 25 nautical miles off Port of Manila on 15-September-2020. PCG Commandant, Admiral George V Ursabia Jr personally welcomed Philippine National Defense (DND) Secretary Delfin N Lorenzana and Philippine Navy (PN) Flag-Officer-In-Command, Vice Admiral Giovanni Carlo J Bacordo who witnessed the activity….



Aiding the Nation Against the COVID-19 Pandemic: We Heal as One with the Philippine Coast Guard

The Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) has stricken a lot of countries globally including the Philippines, affecting people’s welfare, socio-economic condition of the country, and government resilience and thinking on ways to respond to the interconnecting issues brought by this pandemic. This pandemic has led the world to enter into a ‘new normal’ set up under adherence of strict health awareness and…



A Tribute to Commo Carlos L Agustin AFP (Ret),RIP, Chairman – Maritime Forum, President – Maritime League

A native of Manila, Commodore Carlos Leong Agustin AFP (Ret) graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, MD, USA in 1960. He took Weapons Systems Engineering at the US Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA; Naval Staff Course at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London, UK; NR course in National Security Management at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces,…



The Navy-Coast Guard Quandary

Reviewing some of my past email, I came across a June 23, 2011 query from a Philippine Marine reserve officer, Frank Suha, who has been living in the United States for many years: There is recent news that PCG is planning to buy brand-new high endurance cutters/vessels – this will be a big help in the West Philippine Sea issue….


Consolidating Our Maritime Forces

To be relevant and to survive, many profit-oriented organizations positively react to their changing operational environment. They are cognizant that the very thing to expect over time is change. As a consequence, they revise their structure to support a new corporate strategy with the aim to improve efficiency, promote teamwork and reduce cost. These changes could lead to mergers, acquisitions,…


Joint Law Enforcement Operation Confiscates Illegal Drugs and Firearms

In Calarian, Zamboanga City, a Joint Law Enforcement Operation resulted to the confiscation of Methamphetamine Hydrochloride (Shabu), and recovery of Firearms in Barangay Tenan, Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay on 13-March 13-2019. The Joint Law Enforcement Troops were composed of: Naval Intelligence Support Unit – 63, Naval Intelligence and Security Group-Western Mindanao (NISG-WM); Provincial Intelligence Branch (PIB); Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit Zamboanga…