Phl Navy trains on humanitarian, disaster response with US, Korean navies

The Armed Forces of the Philippines on Tuesday said Korean Navy personnel arrived in the country to conduct a two-week humanitarian and disaster response training with their navy counterparts in the United States and the Philippines. 

AFP spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said around 190 foreign nationals were onboard the participating navy vessels from the three countries, including training participants and observers. 

“We're expecting in the following days that there will be more active participation from our like-minded countries. It’s an exercise of our interoperability and how we integrated our HADR operations,” she explained. 

Padilla said the Philippine Navy, Korean Navy, and the US Navy are participating in the Indo-Pacific humanitarian exercise in Legazpi City, Albay. 

“These different navies stage search and rescue operations and other missions related to related to humanitarian assistance and disaster response,” she added. 

South Korea has sent its ROKN Il Chul Bong LST-688 vessel, while the US Navy utilizes its fast transport, USNS City of Bismarck, with around 200 personnel. 

Meanwhile, some military and medical teams from Australia, the United Kingdom (UK), and the US will also join the Pacific Partnership Mission, which aims to improve the urban search and rescue capacity of the local disaster management office by 30 percent.

The activity formally began on 1 August and will continue until 14 August.