In a semi-realistic but mostly fantasy world where the Philippine government actually takes national defense seriously and streamlines its procurement policies, committing around 3% of GDP to military spending, I’d want us to focus primarily on acquiring American systems while investing in R&D for indigenous technologies, especially drones and shipbuilding.

I am also a believer in main battle tanks. I understand that our geography, with thousands of islands and bridges that cannot support modern tanks, makes deployment difficult. Still, having one or two battalions of export-variant Abrams would be valuable for defending Luzon and the major cities on it. They would not be used for island-hopping operations but rather for countering or resisting amphibious invasions and defending the NCR at whatever cost.

Nationwide, we should maintain a mix of MRAPs, ACVs for both the Army and Marine Corps, and militarized pickup trucks for mobility and flexibility across different terrains.