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Jeoffrey Maitem

As war rages in the Middle East thousands of miles from the Philippines, a senior military official has urged Manila to reflect on its own vulnerabilities, stressing that military modernisation should not be mere “lip service”.
Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jnr earlier this week called on the country to strengthen its air defences, particularly systems capable of intercepting missiles from hostile states, stressing that Manila should ensure its security suppliers meet demand in the logistics chain.
“It’s a question of national resilience and defence. We should be taking such matters seriously,” he warned on Tuesday.
The Philippines is currently developing an Integrated Air Defence System, a layered network of radar, command-and-control and interceptor systems, to protect airspace and critical assets.
In 2022, the Philippine Air Force introduced the SPYDER system, its first ground-based air defence capability, designed to counter aircraft, drones and missiles. The mobile, medium-range system includes command-and-control and missile units capable of intercepting targets up to 50km away.

Experts say the Iran war underscores the need for robust air defence systems to protect key installations – including military bases, airports and other critical infrastructure – from aerial threats.
Manila, according to Abdul Rahman Yaacob, a non-resident senior fellow of Verve Research, needed effective air defence to protect its BrahMos anti-ship missile system, as without sufficient aerial cover, any hostile actor could easily destroy the India-made arsenal.
“Aerial threats come in the form of aircraft, missiles and cheap drones. Should Manila invest in expensive surface-to-air missile systems, or should it invest in a counter-drone system? Furthermore, events in the Middle East reflect the need for a country to have sufficient numbers of missiles to deal with sustained aerial threats,” Rahman said.
Arnaud Leveau, a geopolitics professor at Paris Dauphine University, said the Philippines was no longer operating in a permissive environment, citing its defence posture as shifting from a long period focused mainly on internal security towards an external and archipelagic outlook.
In practical terms, Leveau said the country now had to think about the protection of airbases, ports, command nodes, logistics hubs and critical infrastructure against aircraft, missiles and, increasingly, drones.
“This is linked not only to recurring tensions with [mainland] China in the South China Sea, but also to the possibility that a crisis around Taiwan could spill over into northern Philippine territory and nearby maritime approaches,” he said.

Leveau urged the Philippines to “avoid searching for a single prestige system and instead build a layered architecture”, as its current SPYDER batteries did not amount to a comprehensive shield.
“In short, the Philippines needs not the most impressive missile on paper, but the most usable combination of systems under real-world conditions,” he said.
Among the less advanced
Across the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), air defence varies widely, with Singapore seen as the benchmark while most countries are still working to build up their systems.
While Manila is improving its missile defence systems, it remains one of the less advanced players in this field, according to Rahman.
He pointed to Singapore as the regional standard, citing its multilayered, networked air defence system that combined platforms such as SPYDER and ASTER 30, supported by strong sensors and command-and-control.
“By contrast, the Philippines has begun to establish a more serious capability, but it is still at an earlier stage in terms of scale, layering and integration. Compared with some other Southeast Asian states, the Philippine position is more mixed,” he said.
“Malaysia, for example, has also announced plans to acquire medium-range air defence systems, suggesting that several Asean members recognise similar gaps.”

Rahman said the Philippines’ three SPYDER batteries were insufficient to protect major population centres and key military installations, and should consider other options, with long-time ally the United States grappling with its own supply chain problems.
“We have seen this in the current Middle East conflict – the US shifted the THAAD system from South Korea to the Middle East because it is running low on interceptors in the current military conflict in the Middle East,” Rahman said.
He suggested Manila look at possibilities including the European-made ASTER 30 surface-to-air missile system and South Korea’s M-SAM II system.
“It is a logical approach to not put one country’s air defence system into one basket,” Rahman said, recognising that although America had stationed Typhon mid-range missiles in Northern Luzon despite China’s objections, much depended on whether Washington could provide timely supply.
Building meaningful drone capability, however, isn’t cheap. Analysts say it can cost more than US$1 billion annually, depending on how advanced and large-scale the system is.
“If cost is an issue, the question is whether the Philippines can leverage assistance from partner countries, such as Japan’s Official Security Assistance, to acquire drone warfare capabilities,” Rahman said, noting that ideally, weapons procurement should factor in costs for maintenance and engineering support

Vincent Kyle Parada, a lecturer at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, said low-cost interceptor drones developed by Ukraine to defend against Russian attacks could be an option.
“The STING interceptor drone, for example, costs about US$2,000 compared with traditional missile interceptors that range in the millions,” Parada said.
“Ukraine and the Philippines have been looking to collaborate on drones in pursuit of a self-reliant defence posture, so that’s a possible way forward for defence ties.”
Muhammad Faizal Bin Abdul Rahman, a research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said lessons from the Middle East conflict included vulnerabilities for smaller allies hosting the forces of a superpower that was concentrating its military operations elsewhere.
“It is crucial to consider the reliability of the US, not only as a security guarantor but also as an arms supplier. An unpredictable US and Israel, distracted by conflicts elsewhere and overstretching its military industries, may divert weapon supplies due to shortages,” Faizal said.
“To ensure supply chain resilience, the Philippines would need to deepen partnerships with other like-minded countries to diversify its sources of air defence systems.”


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The Philippines

Philippines urged to ‘seriously’ address defence gaps to counter aerial threats

The Philippine Air Force’s SPYDER system is designed to counter aircraft, drones and missiles. Photo: Philippine Air Force

The SPYDER system in the Philippines. The mobile, medium-range system includes command-and-control and missile units capable of intercepting targets up to 50km away. Photo: Philippine Air Force

The BrahMos weapons system on display in New Delhi, India. Photo: Reuters

The US has stationed the Typhon system in Northern Luzon. Photo: US Army

A Sting interceptor drone by the Ukrainian company Wild Hornets flies at an undisclosed location in Ukraine on Monday. Photo: Reuters

As US missiles leave South Korea, the Philippines asks: are we next?

Patriot missile launchers are seen deployed at a US military base in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, on Sunday. Photo: Yonhap/AFP

Filipino protesters shout slogans to condemn the Iran war during a rally near the US embassy in Manila on Friday. Photo: AP

US troopers in battle gear seen during a joint military exercise in the Philippines in 2024. Photo: AP

Smoke from an intercepted Iranian missile is seen in the sky above Doha, Qatar, last week. Photo: EPA

A Filipino soldier peers through an observation telescope on the Philippine-occupied Thitu Island in the South China Sea last month. Photo: Reuters

Philippines eyes ‘game changer’ for maritime defence with French shipbuilding boost

Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) vessel BRP Cabra sails during a maritime drill in disputed waters of the South China Sea in June 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE

French Ambassador to the Philippines, Marie Fontanel, has said the shipbuilding arrangement will cover the local construction of 20 aluminium-hulled coastguard cutters. Photo: Raissa Robles

A Philippine coastguard vessel (left) patrols near the grounded navy ship BRP Sierra Madre on Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed South China Sea. Photo: AFP

The BRP Gabriela Silang patrol ship, built by OCEA, sails in the disputed South China Sea in September 2022. Photo: EPA-EFE

Hanwha combat systems deal deepens South Korea’s role in Philippine defence

Hanwha Systems Combat System (CMS) in a simulated anti-submarine warfare scene. Photo: Hanwha Systems


A rendered image of Hanwha Systems’ naval combat management system. Photo: Hanwha Systems

Visitors view a mock-up of an unmanned marine system by South Korea’s Hanwha at the Asian Defence and Security Exhibition in Manila on September 25, 2024. Photo: AFP

Philippines to get up to US$3.5 billion defence aid to counter ‘serious threats’

US and Filipino soldiers fire a howitzer during the annual joint “Balikatan” military exercises in Aparri, Cagayan province, Philippines in May. Photo: Reuters

Republican Senator Roger Wicker speaking at a committee hearing in Washington in 2022. Photo: TNS

US President Donald Trump meets with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr at the White House in Washington in July. Photo: EPA

US and Philippine soldiers attend the opening ceremony of the annual US-Philippines Balikatan joint military exercise at a camp in Manila in April. Photo: AFP

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The Iran war has underscored the need for robust air systems and Manila should look to build a layered defence architecture, experts say


The Iran war has underscored the need for robust air systems and Manila should look to build a layered defence architecture, experts say.


Philippines urged to ‘seriously’ address defence gaps to counter aerial threats

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Iran war has underscored the need for robust air systems and Manila should look to build a layered defence architecture, experts say

The Iran war has underscored the need for robust air systems and Manila should look to build a layered defence architecture, experts say