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The government has agreed to buy five coast guard patrol ships from Japan, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Friday, as the country faces increasing Chinese aggression in the West Philippine Sea.
Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo and Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Endo Kazuya on Friday signed a P23.85-billion ($413.3 million) loan package under Japan’s Official Development Assistance (ODA), for the purchase of the boats as part of the Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
The PCG, an attached agency of the Department of Transportation, has been at the forefront among the country’s law enforcement and security agencies in asserting Philippine sovereignty over the West Philippine Sea.
