CAMP AGUINALDO, Quezon City — The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Tuesday formally commissioned two new naval vessels at Subic Bay, underscoring Manila’s accelerating push to strengthen maritime defense amid intensifying regional security pressures and the enduring challenges of policing one of the world’s largest archipelagic states.
The concurrent christening and commissioning of the offshore patrol vessel BRP Rajah Sulayman (PS-20) and the fast attack interdiction craft BRP Audrey Bañares (PG-910) took place at the Naval Operating Base in Subic, Zambales, in a ceremony led by Gen. Romeo S. Brawner Jr., the AFP chief of staff. Senior military leaders, including Vice Adm. Jose Ma. Ambrosio Ezpeleta, the Philippine Navy’s flag officer in command, attended alongside defense officials and invited guests.
The addition of the two vessels expands the Navy’s operational reach across both coastal and blue-water domains — a central requirement for a country composed of more than 7,600 islands whose security, economy and food supply depend heavily on surrounding seas.
“The commissioning of these ships is not merely an addition of assets,” General Brawner said in his keynote address. “It is a reinforcement of our duty to secure our seas, protect our people and uphold the sovereignty of the Republic.”
The ceremony also carried symbolic weight. Each vessel bears the name of a Filipino defender from different eras of the nation’s maritime history — one from the pre-colonial past, the other from modern counterinsurgency conflict — linking contemporary defense policy to a longer narrative of resistance and sacrifice at sea.
The BRP Rajah Sulayman, an offshore patrol vessel designed for extended maritime operations, is named after the 16th-century ruler of Manila who led Tagalog forces against Spanish conquistadors during the 1570 Battle of Manila. Naval officials said the name reflects leadership and defiance in defense of territory — qualities the ship is intended to project as it patrols Philippine waters and exclusive economic zones.
The BRP Audrey Bañares, a smaller but fast interdiction craft, commemorates Jose Audrey Bañares, a Navy commando killed in 2013 during a sea engagement with Moro National Liberation Front fighters off Zamboanga City. Its mission profile focuses on rapid response, interdiction and coastal security operations, particularly in littoral zones vulnerable to smuggling, piracy and militant infiltration.
By integrating the two vessels into the active fleet, defense planners aim to improve layered maritime coverage — pairing endurance patrol platforms with agile strike and interception capabilities. Such combinations have become increasingly important as the Philippines shifts military planning toward external defense after decades dominated by internal security operations.
The AFP’s modernization program, revived and expanded over the past decade, has prioritized maritime and air capabilities amid growing concern over territorial disputes in the South China Sea and the need to secure sea lines of communication that carry most of the country’s trade and energy supplies.
Philippine officials have repeatedly emphasized that naval expansion is defensive rather than confrontational. General Brawner echoed that message in Subic, framing modernization as a stabilizing rather than escalatory effort.
“Modernization is not a signal of aggression,” he said. “It is a statement of responsibility. A credible defense posture deters conflict. Preparedness prevents miscalculation. Capability preserves peace.”
Strategists note that credible maritime presence can reduce the risk of incidents by clarifying patrol authority and response capacity in contested or heavily trafficked waters. For the Philippines — whose fishermen, coast guard and navy often operate in overlapping zones with foreign vessels — visibility and persistence at sea have become as important as raw combat power.
Subic Bay, once home to the largest United States naval base in the Pacific, has re-emerged in recent years as a central node of Philippine naval operations and defense cooperation. Its deep harbor and strategic position near the South China Sea make it a logical site for fleet expansion ceremonies and deployments.
The commissioning comes as the Philippine Navy continues a gradual transition from a historically under-equipped force toward a more capable maritime service. Over the past decade it has acquired frigates, patrol ships, coastal defense systems and surveillance assets, though analysts say capability gaps remain significant relative to regional peers.
Still, the symbolic and operational impact of each new vessel is substantial in a fleet where numbers remain modest. Offshore patrol vessels such as the Rajah Sulayman enable longer presence missions in distant waters, while interdiction craft like the Audrey Bañares enhance coastal enforcement and rapid engagement capacity.
Defense officials say such platforms are essential not only for territorial defense but also for humanitarian assistance, disaster response and maritime law enforcement — roles frequently assigned to the Navy in a disaster-prone archipelago.
In linking modernization with national memory, the AFP also sought to highlight continuity between past and present defenders of Philippine waters. Naming vessels after historical and contemporary heroes, officials said, reinforces institutional identity and public connection to the armed forces.
“The ships carry stories,” a Navy officer said after the ceremony. “They remind every sailor that they serve in a lineage of sacrifice — from the warriors of Manila Bay centuries ago to those who fell in modern conflicts.”
As the Philippine Navy integrates the two vessels into operational deployment cycles, planners expect them to contribute to both routine patrols and joint exercises with regional partners — activities Manila views as essential to maintaining stability in increasingly contested seas.
For the AFP leadership, the Subic ceremony marked both a concrete gain in maritime capability and a message about the country’s strategic direction: that safeguarding the archipelago’s waters has become the defining mission of a military long oriented inward.
“The sea defines us,” General Brawner said. “To protect it is to protect the future of the Filipino nation.”