AFP on reports US sent another Typhon missile: ‘The more the merrier’
The armies of the US and the Philippines conducted a subject matter expert exchange about the US Typhon midrange capability missile on June 27, 2024 in Laoag, Ilocos Norte. PHOTO FROM THE US ARMY PACIFIC
MANILA, Philippines — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) has welcomed reports saying that another Mid-Range Capability (MRC) Typhon missile from the United States Indo-Pacific Command (Indopacom) is already on its way to the country.
According to AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla, this would help their personnel train more effectively.
READ: Army to conduct next phase of US missile system training in Feb
“This is a welcome development for the Armed Forces of the Philippines. We can say that the more the merrier. So the more assets that we have, the more also that we are able to train more personnel on our part. So we accept this willingly,” Padilla said in a press briefing on Tuesday.
“We welcome events like this because this would help our personnel train faster. So we welcome if it will arrive,” Philippine Army spokesperson Col. Louie Dema-ala said.
Defense News, a leading global publication specializing in defense journalism, reported last week that the US Army’s 3rd Multidomain Task Force unit is readying its Typhon battery for deployment in the Pacific theater.
If this happens, it will be the US Army’s second such missile system to enter the region, according to the report.
The first US Typhon missile arrived in the Philippines on April 11, 2024 and was first used during the Balikatan exercises.
It has stayed in the country since and was last spotted in Ilocos Norte, a coastal province facing Taiwan, deemed by China as a renegade province subject to reunification.
AFP chief-of-staff Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr. said he wanted the Typhon missile to stay in the country “forever” and that he hoped the Philippine government could acquire its own.
In February this year, the Philippine Army conducted the next phase of its Combined Arms Training Exercise for MRC missiles in their drills.
The Catex Katihan is in preparation for the annual Salaknib Exercise between the armies of Manila and Washington, which already kicked off in Fort Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija on Monday.
