PBBM calls for military retooling to combat emerging forms of warfare

The President warned that the country’s enemies would discretely infiltrate the very communities and institutions the government and security institutions seek to protect. (File Photo: Presidential Communications Office/Facebook)

MANILA – President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has urged Philippine security forces to develop skills and knowledge to combat new forms of warfare, particularly with the digital space serving as a new battlefield.

In his “Talk to Troops” during his visit to Camp Edilberto Evangelista in Cagayan de Oro City on Thursday, Marcos told members of the 4th Infantry Division (4ID) that they must be prepared to fight false narratives, disinformation, and digital operations that seek “to sow conflict against us and amongst us.”

“Times are changing and we are facing new threats now to our nation’s security. The battlefield is changing, it will go beyond traditional warfighting as we have known it,” he said.

“I call on you to develop the skills that are going to be required to combat these new forms of warfare, including those that extend up to the digital realm.”

The President warned that the country’s enemies would discretely infiltrate the very communities and institutions the government and security institutions seek to protect.

He, however, emphasized that the government would be “ready to fight back and implement countermeasures to thwart any of their nefarious schemes and attempts.”

The Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the intensifying geopolitical tension in the Indo Pacific has resulted in hostile efforts by or with the substantial support of a foreign government to influence the domestic narrative and discourse, including the use of disinformation and propaganda spread by nefarious actors.

Meanwhile, on the domestic front, Marcos urged the military to “keep up the momentum” of their operations until their jurisdictions are completely free of terrorist influence.

He noted that the government programs aimed at defeating insurgency in the countryside offer “greener pastures and a better life that they can be part of.”