India, Philippines mull deployment of Indian defense attaché

New Delhi: With an eye on boosting bilateral defence cooperation, India and the Philippines are mulling the possibility of the deployment of an Indian defence attaché in Manila. This suggests that an official Indian representative who monitors defence plans and security developments in the Philippines may soon be appointed. The delegation of visiting officials from the Department of National Defense-Armed Forces of the Philippines attended the 4th Philippines-India Joint Defense Cooperation Committee (JDCC), which was held on March 31, under the leadership of Defense Assistant Secretary for Strategic Assessments and International Affairs Pablo Lorenzo. Representatives met for the second time in service-to-service on March 29 prior to the JDCC. While there, the nations decided to expand their cooperation on maritime security issues and suggested looking into cooperative projects in the areas of cyber security, military medical, joint training, humanitarian aid, and disaster response, as well as space security. While the Philippines provided an update to its counterparts on the security situation in the area, India also talked about its Act East Policy. Representatives from the two nations also talked about the Philippines-India Military Engagement Strategy for the years 2023 to 2025. The 2006 Philippines-India Agreement Concerning Defense Cooperation, which was signed during the visit to the Philippines by the former Indian President Abdul Kalam, was reaffirmed by Manila and New Delhi. “The Philippine and Indian delegations also shared best practices on their respective defense indigenization or self-reliant defense posture program, and updates on procurements and acquisitions,” the Philippine DND said in a statement. Recall that the Philippines has consented to purchase an Indian anti-ship missile system in January 2022. The BrahMos Aerospace company received the over $375 million contract for the Philippine Navy’s anti-ship missile system. Read all the Latest News, Trending News,  Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.