The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) boosted its maritime and aerial capabilities after acquiring two unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) donated by the Federal Republic of Germany on Thursday, June 9.
PCG Commandant, Admiral Artemio Abu personally accepted the donated drones from German Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel and Immanuel Gebhardt, country director of the German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ), at the PCG headquarters in Port Area, Manila.
Abu conveyed his sincere appreciation to the German government for its “continued support to the PCG's capability development.”
"We recognize the emerging importance of unmanned systems in the performance of coast guard functions. More than its contribution to maritime surveillance for drug interdiction, illegal fishing operations, marine pollution and other nefarious activities, these UAV can improve PCG disaster response and relief operations particularly in damage assessment and in identifying areas where relief operations are badly needed," the PCG Commandant said.
"The UAV will also be utilized to provide imagery for reconnaissance purposes and generate high - resolution maps that can be used for a variety of maritime scenarios, such as rapid damage assessment of an oil spill incident or a quick survey of an area of interest for possible unlawful acts at sea," he added.
"For these, the PCG and the whole Filipino Nation are truly grateful to the German Government. We are looking forward to our continued engagement and fostering a stronger partnership with our German friends," Abu stated.
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom also expressed intention to bolster its cooperation with the PCG.
British Ambassador to the Philippines Laure Beaufils also paid a courtesy call to Abu at the PCG headquarters also on Thursday.
During the meeting, Abu requested for more specialized and skill-based education and training between the PCG and the British government.
According to the PCG Commandant, these initiatives will advance Coast Guard personnel’s knowledge and skills to improve efforts in upholding maritime safety, maritime search and rescue (SAR), and maritime law enforcement.
“Issues discussed during the meeting included stronger cooperation between the Philippines and the United Kingdom through table-top exercises and other related training to strengthen interoperability between law enforcement agencies and extend assistance to projects related to maritime security,” he said.