All air and naval assets that Western Command will need to execute its tasks will be made available by the Armed Forces of the Philippines in line with the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept that the country will be adopting, Vice Admiral Alberto Carlos said.
Carlos stated that the AFP has given the assurance that Western Command (Wescom) will be able to implement its mission with the shift to external defense operations without giving specifics.
“All options, all assets in the inventory of the AFP are available to me as I do my defense operational planning, but I cannot discuss that in public kung anong barko o eroplano, but all (assets) are available for deployment here in WPS,” Carlos said in a press conference during the 48th founding anniversary celebration of Wescom on Tuesday, March 12.
“All available aircraft of the Philippine Air Force and vessels o the Philippine Navy are available to me, we will just align this with the new defense concept, and if it calls for the deployment of aircraft, then we will deploy,” he stated.
Citing operational security concerns, Carlos said he cannot give specific details as to how many or what assets will be deployed and where.
“But I can assure the public that Wescom will do its job to protect and defend our sovereignty and our sovereign rights in our established jurisdiction in the West Philippine Sea,” he said.
Carlos further stated that Wescom is ready and eager to implement the CADC as AFP shifts its focus from internal security to external defense operations.
“I cannot discuss operational changes for operational security matters, but rest assured that Wescom is really excited to operationalize this in WPS, kasi nga it is one of those signs that we are really shifting to external defense. So we welcome that concept, we are excited to operationalize it,” Carlos said.
AFP Deputy Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Charlton Gaerlan also said that the availability and deployment of assets are part of the AFP’s mandate to defend the country and not meant for anything else.
“All those assets will be used, kung kailangan talaga. What we do is ensure that all the unified commands, including Wescom, will be able to defend their joint area operation with all the assets provided by the AFP,” Gaerlan said.
He further explained that the availability of AFP assets to areas that need them is one of the main objectives of the implementation of CADC,
“In the case of Wescom, kung ano ang kailangan nila, ipo-provide ng AFP at kung may kulang pa, yun naman yung ating ipo-procure. Yun ang ibig sabihin nung bagong concept na kung ano yung kailangan, ipo-provide, kung may kakulangan ay pupunuan,” he stated.
Meanwhile, former AFP Chief of Staff and now Presidential Adviser on Maritime Concerns Andres Centino also added that CADC implementation will also include the scheme of deployment of AFP troops and assets “to ensure and to allow the armed forces to protect and ensure that Filipino nationals, companies, and even those that are allowed by the government to enjoy the bounties of the marine resources of our maritime domain.”
