Citing its gratitude to the Philippines which sent soldiers to its defense in the Korean War, the Republic of Korea has given the Philippines a modern corvette that will increase the combat power of the indifferently armed Philippine Navy.

The donation of the "Pohang-class" corvette comes amid unrelenting tensions in the West Philippine Sea (the Philippines' name for the South China Sea) fueled by China's illegal claim to own the entire sea up to the shorelines of the Philippines and Vietnam.

Like Us on Facebook

China's increasing bullying of its Asian neighbors has also forced the Philippines and Vietnam into a de facto military alliance tacitly supported by Japan and the United States.

The Philippines' Department of Foreign Affairs said the corvette will be decommissioned by the end of the year and donated to the Philippines.

"South Korea's gesture is a small token compared with the great contribution of Filipino troops during the Korean War," said South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwang-jin.

The Philippines was the first Asian nation and the third member state of the United Nations to send combat troops to defend South Korea against communist China and North Korea during the Korean War (1950 to 1953).

Some 7,400 officers and men of the Philippine Army served in Korea from 1950 to 1955 under the flag of the Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea or PEFTOK. Over 500 Filipinos became casualties during the Korean War.

The Filipinos consistently defeated the communist Chinese during the Korean War. The greatest Filipino victory over the communist Chinese was the Battle of Yuldong fought on April 23, 1951 inside North Korea.

The victory saw a grossly outnumbered Filipino battalion of only 900 men hold off an entire Chinese army, helping prevent a catastrophic defeat of the United Nations.

The Philippines said the corvette will arrive combat-ready, and will have its electronic warfare and weapons systems intact. Pohangs in service with the Republic of Korea Navy are armed with Exocet and Harpoon anti-ship missiles; 76 mm Oto Melara automatic cannons; Breda 40 mm twin cannons; Mark 32 triple tube torpedo launchers and Mark 9 depth charges.

The donation of the corvette follows South Korea's recent gift of a landing craft and 16 rubber boats to the Philippines.

The Philippines has been improving the quality of its armed forces with South Korean assistance. Last March, the Philippines signed an agreement to buy 12 South Korean-made FA-50 jets for US$421.12 million.

South Korea is also a leading contender in a tender for close support or attack aircraft for the Philippine Air Force.

Tagswarship, gift, pohang-class corvette