Defense of the Republic of the Philippines

Sea Ceptor is the next-generation, ship-based, all-weather, air defence weapon system. Through the use of new advanced technologies, Sea Ceptor provides complete protection against all known and projected air targets.

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Sea Ceptor will protect both the host ship and high value units in the local area. The Weapon System has the capability to intercept and thereby neutralise the full range of current and future threats including combat aircraft and the new generation of supersonic anti-ship missiles. Capable of multiple channels of fire, the system will also counter saturation attacks.

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The weapon system can be easily retrofitted into a wide range of platforms, ranging from 50m OPVs to frigates and destroyers. Two main features provide this flexibility.

Firstly, the use of “soft-launch” weapon technology for a highly scaleable and compact launch system that can easily be installed in a number of locations. Secondly, Sea Ceptor can be targeted from the ship’s existing surveillance radar sensors and therefore does not require dedicated fire control radars.

Sea Ceptor will operate from the SYLVER and Mk41 launchers using a quad-pack configuration, various flexible canister configurations are also available. The Soft Vertical Launch technology reduces system mass and eases installation.

A new naval air defence system that can intercept and destroy enemy missiles is to be manufactured in the UK under a £250 million (US$400 million) contract.
 
Sea Ceptor, which will be fitted to the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigates and, in future, the Type 26 Global Combat Ship, is a cutting-edge missile designed and built by MBDA.

Capable of travelling at speeds of more than 2,000 miles per hour, it will be able to intercept multiple targets and protect an area out to a range of 25 kilometres.

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MBDA and Lockheed Martin demonstrated the first launch of a Common Anti-air Modular Missile (CAMM) from Lockheed Martin’s MK 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) launcher using the host variant of the Extensible Launching System (ExLS).

This is the first test by MBDA and Lockheed Martin since the May 2013 announcement of cooperation between the two companies to offer MBDA missile systems for use with the MK 41 and ExLS family of launchers. The test used MBDA’s soft vertical launch technology to eject the CAMM from its canister and position the missile for main motor ignition. The trial is the first in a series to demonstrate that the CAMM can be installed using ExLS in vessels that use the MK 41 launcher or on the 3-cell stand-alone ExLS CAMM launcher.

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The New Zealand Ministry of Defence signed a contract with MBDA for the provision of Sea Ceptor for the Local Area Air Defence element of the Royal New Zealand Navy’s ANZAC Frigate Systems Upgrade (FSU) project. This contract confirms the selection of the system by the RNZN for its ANZAC frigates that was announced in October 2013.

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In September 2012 the Thai government approved the purchase of two medium-sized frigates with a budget of 1 billion U.S. dollars after denying allegation about the country's navy persistent request for submarines. The ships will beef up the capability of the Thai maritime force in patrolling the country's territorial waters in the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea.

The 1-billion-US dollar fund, approved by the Yingluck Cabinet for the procurement of the frigates, is to be spent for a 10-year period, beginning from current fiscal year. The two frigates are unlikely be procured at the same time. The procurement of the frigates will supposedly take place in two phases: in the first, one frigate for 15bn Baht ($488m) during the fiscal years of 2012-2016 and during the second phase, another one for 15bn Baht during the fiscal years of 2014-2018. The navy is reportedly looking for ships with an approximate 4,000-ton displacement, which might be either brand-new or secondhand, depending on specifications and preferences of the commanding admirals.

The two frigates to be acquired will replace two US-made, Knox-class frigates, namely HTMS Phutthayodfa Chulalok and HTMS Phutthalertla Napalai, both scheduled to be decommissioned in 2015, Defense Minister Sukumpol Suwanatat said. The two frigates would be capable of engaging in three possible combat scenarios with simultaneous maneuverability: anti-aircraft, anti-surface ship and anti-submarine warfare.

• Lockheed Martin Offers LCS to Thailand | Janes via Defense Studies Blogspot - 29 January 2013
• S Korea to build Thai navy frigate | Bangkok Post - 21 Apr 2013
• Thai Cabinet approved budget for the first phase of the frigate project | Royal Thai Navy - 30 July 2013

Defence and security company Saab has signed a contract with Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Korea, for development and integration of combat management and radar systems on a new frigate for the Royal Thai Navy. The order amounts to MSEK 850 (approx US$134 million).

The contract comprises of combat management system and radar system.

Saab is the combat system integrator. In addition to the supply of its own systems, Saab is also responsible for procurement and integrations of third-party systems.

Deliveries of ship equipment are scheduled to commence in 2016 and production will take place in Sweden, Denmark,Thailand and Australia.

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By Ian Nicolas P. Cigaral (Reporter)
and Victor V. Saulon (Sub-Editor)

A JOINT development between the Philippines and China in the resource-rich South China Sea would be difficult to implement and may not conform with Manila’s legally won entitlements over the sea, an expert from a US think tank said.

Both countries, which have overlapping claims over the contested waters, are now open to the idea of joint energy ventures, with China’s foreign ministry recently saying that such cooperation will not “impair” the “final delimitation of boundary.”

But according to Gregory B. Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) of Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies, working out such an agreement will be difficult considering its complexity.

He explained that under such arrangement, Manila and Beijing would “set aside” questions of sovereign rights, which he said would disregard the arbitral award won by the Philippines in an international court last year.

“That would not be in keeping with the arbitral award, which recognized Reed Bank as being part of the Philippine continental shelf,” Mr. Poling, who specializes on maritime security issues in Asia, said in an e-mail interview last week.

“But more importantly, it would violate the Philippine Constitution and would probably face an immediate court challenge. In other words, China and the Philippines are talking about very different things here,” he added.

“Getting both sides to say they like the idea of joint development was the easy part — working out an actual arrangement will be much, much harder.”

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‘EASE TENSION’
In the same interview, Mr. Poling qualified that any commercial energy ventures like the one discussed by Philippine oil and gas firm PXP Energy Corp. and China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) would be “great” and could ease tensions.

But China may not approve such cooperation, Mr. Poling also said, adding that China instead “seems to be interested in a joint development scheme.”

“It (commercial energy agreement) would lower tensions and would be entirely consistent with international and Philippine law. But there is no indication that Beijing would agree to that kind of a deal,” he said.

Talks between PXP and CNOOC about joint exploration and development of Reed Bank were disrupted in late 2014 after Manila, under the administration of then president Benigno S. C. Aquino III, filed an arbitration case against Beijing.

Citing warmer ties with China, PXP said it is hoping to revive the stalled negotiations under Mr. Aquino’s successor, Rodrigo R. Duterte, who has set aside The Hague ruling in exchange for billions of dollars in Chinese aid and investment.

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Among the service contracts (SC) that had been placed on force majeure is Service Contract 72, which is covered by the decision handed down by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague in the Netherlands on July 12, 2016.

The court ruled that Reed Bank, where SC 72 lies, is within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone as defined under United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

On March 2, 2015, the DoE placed SC 72 under force majeure because the contract area falls within the disputed area, which was the subject of the arbitration process.

Under the terms of the force majeure, exploration work at SC 72 is suspended from Dec. 15, 2014 until the DoE notifies the exploration company that it may continue drilling.

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For now, what the DoE is allowing for exploration are areas within Philippine sovereignty, Mr. Cusi said.

Qatar confirmed today its order for seven vessels from Italian shipbulder Fincantieri following the signing of a preliminary contract in June 2016. The deal consists in four air defence corvettes of over 100 meters in length, one amphibious vessel (LPD - Landing Platform Dock acting as mobile radar station for the corvettes), and two patrol vessels (OPV - Offshore Patrol Vessel)

"We have signed a contract on behalf of the Qatari navy to acquire seven warships from Italy for five billion euros (5.9 billion U.S. dollars)," Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said at a Doha press conference with his visiting Italian counterpart Angelino Alfano.

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Leonardo will be responsible for the integrated supply of the new naval units’ combat system, main radars and on-board sensors and defence sub-systems, including 76/62 medium calibre and 30mm small calibre weapon systems, the anti-torpedo protection system, the Thesan mine avoidance sonar.

MBDA will be supplying the Qatar Emiri Naval Forces (QENF) with Exocet MM40 Block 3 anti-ship missiles as well as Aster 30 Block 1 and VL MICA air defence missiles.