FILIPINO and Indonesian troops are training on counter-insurgency operations in West Java province in Indonesia, the Philippine Army disclosed yesterday.
Army spokesman Col. Xerxes Trinidad said the exercise, dubbed Training Activity Indonesia-Philippines, started last July 14 and is due to end this Sunday, July 24.
Trinidad said the 14th iteration of the bilateral exercise involved troops from the Philippine Army’s First Scout Ranger Regiment (FSRR) and Indonesian Army’s Komando Cadangan Strategis Angkatan Darat (Kostrad).
He said the exercise is meant to “sharpen their interoperability and capabilities in a range of military operation(s).”
“(It) focuses on the exchange of information, tactics, techniques and procedures in the conduct of counter-insurgency operations,” Trinidad added.
Trinidad said FSRR chief of staff Col. Samuel Yunque discussed urban operations during the campaign to quell the so-called Marawi City siege in 2017.
Trinidad said Kostrad intelligence officer Col. Muhammad Aidi “shared lessons learned in their campaign against the Free Papua Separatist Movement in West Papua,”
“FSSR and Kostrad teams also shared lessons on Tactical Combat Casualty Care which culminated in a mission-planning and raid practical exercise. Teams from both armies likewise held close-quarter battle drills,” said Trinidad.
