The Italian government has expressed its intention to support the ongoing Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) modernization program.

Italian Ambassador to Manila Marco Clemente made this remark in a courtesy call with Department of National Defense (DND) officer-in-charge (OIC) Undersecretary Jose Faustino Jr. on Aug. 16.

“The officials also recalled the successful acquisition of AgustaWestland helicopters for the Philippine Navy and attack helicopters for the Philippine Air Force to which the Ambassador expressed the Italian government’s readiness to continuously support the capability-upgrade program of the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” DND spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said in a statement Thursday.

Andolong was referring to the AW-109 helicopters which are now in service with the PN and PAF as attack and combat utility helicopters.

The PN has two attack versions of the AW-109 along with three combat utility versions of the aircraft while the PAF has eight.

These helicopters were delivered from 2013 to 2016.

“The two sides committed to work on a framework of cooperation to further enhance logistics cooperation between the Philippines and Italy,” Andolong said.

Clemente also congratulated Faustino on his appointment to the DND and shared that he will continue to work on promoting Manila-Rome bilateral relations.

Faustino also extended his greetings to the ambassador in connection with the 75th anniversary of Philippines-Italy diplomatic relations.

He also renewed the DND’s commitment to developing the two countries’ defense relations.

“Recognizing that both countries are prone to seismic and volcanic activities, Senior Undersecretary Faustino and Ambassador Clemente also discussed the possibility of cooperation in the area of civil defense,” Andolong said. (PNA)