January 9, 2015

"The Philippine military on Friday signed a pact with the U.S. Navy to buy two secondhand C-130 transport planes to boost its capability to fan out quickly for territorial defence and humanitarian operations.

Washington has been helping develop the military capability of its former colony in the face of serious security challenges in the South China Sea, known in Vietnam as the East Sea, as China steps up its presence in disputed areas.

China claims almost all of the sea, believed to be rich in mineral and oil-and-gas deposits. Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines also have claims on the waters, traversed by about $5 trillion of ship-borne trade each year."

Read more:

http://www.thanhniennews.com/world/philippines-to-buy-two-c130-transport-planes-from-us-navy-37438.html