The Philippine Marine Corps revealed a new concept for archipelagic defense in its latest move to reorient from internal to external security operations.
In line with the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept, the various branches of the Armed Forces of the Philippines have developed or are developing their plans to address conventional adversaries. Among the leaders in this shift, in both force planning and procurements, is the Philippine Marine Corps. Its latest effort was revealed during a visit by the Combat Service Brigade commander Brigadier General Gregorio Hernandez to Tawi-Tawi on Monday.
Dubbed the Littoral Response Group, the concept was described in a press release as “a strategic initiative designed for rapid and effective response in archipelagic defense operations.” While details are unclear, the concept aims to allow Philippine Marines to “operate persistently across maritime terrain in a distributed and networked manner, forming part of the Fleet-Marine maneuver force.”
Tawi-Tawi, the county’s southernmost province and home to the 2nd Marine Brigade, recently received the force’s first Maritime Security Battalion earlier this month. Despite being located hundreds of kilometers away from South China Sea hotspots, Philippine troops in the area have reorganized for territorial defense operations amid an increasing number of transits between the Pacific and Sulu Sea by People’s Liberation Army Navy and China Coast Guard vessels. Through the Maritime Security Battalion, new Marine operating forces and the Littoral Response Group concept, Philippine Marines look to return to their maritime mission after years of ground-based counterinsurgency.
The force has also looked to foreign Marine Corps for inspiration and assistance in their modernization effort. Among the most active partners is the U.S. Marine Corps, sharing experience through the numerous training activities held annually on Philippine territory. By extension, Manila has witnessed the newest U.S. formations, tactics and equipment geared for maritime domain awareness and coastal defense – key aspects eyed by the Philippine Marine Corps in its modernization. The force has already formed the Coastal Defense Regiment, a unit dedicated to operating BrahMos anti-ship cruise missiles and surface-to-air systems, which has similarities with some components of the American Marine Littoral Regiment.
Royal Marine cooperation with their Philippine counterparts may expand in the future as well, with Commandant Arturo G. Rojas stating that the force was examining their Future Commando Force plan. According to a release, the Philippine Marine Corps examined the program to “determine its feasibility as a new model.” It is unknown if the Philippine Littoral Response Group concept is related to the force’s review of the British plan, as the Royal Navy currently operates two of the formations for operations in the Atlantic and Indo-Pacific.
