 |
| DND officer-in-charge Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. (right) and Indian Ambassador to Manila Shambhu Santha Kumaran (left) (Photo courtesy of DND) |
New Delhi: As the two countries’ defence cooperation continues to develop, the Indian military is willing to offer operational and cyber-security training to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). During a recent courtesy call on the Department of National Defense (DND) of the Phillipines, officer-in-charge undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr., India’s ambassador to the Philippines, Shambhu Kumaran, made this offer.
“On military training cooperation, the Ambassador reiterated the IAF’s offer of courses for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, specifically on operational readiness and cyber security,” DND spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said.
India is one of the Philippines’ key allies in the Indo-Pacific.
The significance of continuing defence cooperation between the two nations, notably the conduct of high-level talks, education and training exchanges, information sharing, and defence industrial and logistical cooperation, among other things was stressed.
The ambassador thanked India for providing the Philippines with defensive technology in his reply. In addition, he called for expanding the communication between the defence and aerospace industries to cover topics like air defence systems, artillery upgrades, and aerospace platforms.
He additionally acknowledged the significance of forging an independent defence posture in addressing contemporary security issues.
India and the Philippines made the decision in August to deepen their cooperation in areas like civil aviation, fintech, education, military, and security. The decision was made during the fourth Strategic Dialogue and the thirteenth Foreign Office Consultations between India and the Philippines, both of which were held in Manila.
India and the Philippines have recently increased their bilateral defence and security cooperation. With India, the Philippines reached a $375 million agreement in January to buy three BrahMos cruise missile batteries.
In March, India and the Philippines agreed to a framework agreement that provided for government-to-government bids for the availability of defence “hardware” and equipment.
