By Robina Asido

Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Kazuhiko Koshikawa said the delivery of the first air surveillance radar system acquired from Mitsubishi Electric Corporation is "well underway".

This was mentioned by Koshikawa in his speech during a ceremony to confer a government award to former Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana in his residence in Makati on Friday night.

"As the delivery of the first air surveillance radar system to Wallace Air Station is well underway, we can look forward to enhanced security advantages not only for our two countries but also for the entire region," he said.

The Japanese ambassador also noted that "the transfer of defense equipment is not only geared towards deepening Japan-Philippines defense and security cooperation, it concurrently heightens the promotion of peace and prosperity in our region."

"Ultimately, it contributes to the strengthened national security of both Japan and the Philippines," he added.

A security source said that the transfer of the radar system was allegedly delayed due to some problem with "its contractors".

It can be recalled that in an interview last December 2022, Maj. Gen. Augustine Malinit, PAF Air Defense Command chief said the first fully operational radar system at Wallace Air Station at San Fernando City, La Union is expected to be turned over to the PAF in the first semester of 2023.

"The radar project under Japan company we expect the delivery of one next year and three more will be by 2024 to 2025," he added.

In a press conference after he received the award, Lorenzana said based on the plan "before", aside from Luzon the three other radars will be position in "Lubang in Mindoro and another one in Visayas and another one in Mindanao."

Lorenzana also noted that the government is also planning to acquire six more radar systems to also cover the southern and northern most part of the country as well as the territory in the Pacific.

"This is not enough part of our program is to procure six more so we can actually put one in Jolo the southernmost Island of the Philippines and also in the northernmost Island in Batanes and off course the other side because while we are looking at the eastern side of the Philippines we are supposed to be aware of what is happening in the Pacific," he said.

"Those radars are very important to our security, before the radar that we were using were American supplied and they were very old so we look around compared the radars of South Korea, Israel and Japan and we came to the conclusion that the Japan radar system the Mitsubishi radar system is superior to the others," said Lorenzana.

"We need this to be able to see over the horizon we must be able to be aware of what other countries are doing within our territories maritime domain territory so that we can also prepare something, we cannot allow people just to pass by without us knowing," he added. DMS