Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro has pitched a 6.3 per cent budget increase to fund the advanced drones and warships
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenReutersPublished: 4:24pm, 25 Aug 2026The Philippines plans to expand its unmanned capabilities, including through development and acquisition of drones as part of efforts to modernise its military, its defence chief said on Tuesday.US defence ally the Philippines also planned to acquire additional guided-missile corvettes and other major defence assets to strengthen its external defence capabilities, Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told a budget hearing in the lower house of Congress.
The armed forces currently operate a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles that provide intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, Teodoro said.
“As we mature on the cycle, then we can acquire more,” Teodoro said in pitching to lawmakers a 6.3 per cent increase in the defence ministry’s budget for 2027, from the 305.5 billion pesos (US$4.95 billion) spending plan approved for this year.
Drone expansion is part of a proposed 50 billion pesos allocation for the Philippines’ modernisation programme next year, 25 per cent higher than that of the current budget.
