TSAMTO, March 1. Philippines Minister of National Defense Delphine Lorenzana said on February 25 that the government of the country does not plan to take sides in the conflict in Ukraine, Manila Bulletin reports.
At the moment, there is an existing deal between the Ministry of Defense of the Philippines and the Government of Russia within the framework of the modernization program of the Armed Forces of the country for the purchase of 16 Mi-17 helicopters.
According to Manila Bulletin, D. Lorenzana believes that the conflict in Ukraine will not affect this project.
Nevertheless, it is obvious that the Philippines is in a difficult situation with the payment of helicopters due to pressure from the United States, which has imposed tough economic sanctions against Russia.
As TSAMTO has already reported, for the first time, Raimundo Elefante, Deputy Minister of National Defense of the Philippines for Logistics and Financial Support, announced his intention to purchase 16-17 Mi-171 helicopters in Russia during the Army 2019 forum.
In March 2020, the Embassy of the Philippines in Russia reported that representatives of the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of the country visited an aircraft factory and a training center in Moscow in connection with the planned purchase of Mi-171 helicopters.
Despite the start of deliveries of Sikorsky S-70i multipurpose helicopters, on November 4, 2020, the Ministry of Budget and Management of the Philippines published a special allocation Order (SARO) in the amount of 1.919 billion philippi approved on October 29, 2020. pesos ($41.56 million) to transfer a 15 percent advance payment for the supply of transport helicopters in accordance with the requirements of the Philippine Armed Forces modernization program.
Although the type of helicopter was not specified in the notification, according to the Philippine defense resource MaxDefense Philippines, 16 new Mi-171 helicopters will be purchased for the Philippine Air Force. Based on the amount of the advance, the total value of the sale may amount to 12.797 billion philipps. pesos ($268.7 million).
On December 7, 2021, D. Lorenzana announced that an initial payment will be made in the near future under the program for the purchase of Russian Mi-17 helicopters for the country's Air Force.
At that time, it was expected that the contract would be finalized in the near future. However, it is still unknown how the Philippine Foreign Ministry intends to circumvent the problem of American sanctions in accordance with the law "On Countering America's Adversaries through Sanctions" (CAATSA).
