FORT BONIFACIO, Metro Manila - The Commandant of the Indonesian Army Command and General Staff College (IACGSC) Maj. Gen. Kurnia Dewantara paid a courtesy call to the Army Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. Jesus B. Sarsagat here today, August 7, 2019.
The two senior leaders discussed the continuous cooperation of the two armies to combat terrorism through the conduct of various training exchanges here in the Philippines and Indonesia.
Dewantara is in the country heading a 61-member delegation from the IACGSC for an Overseas Study Tour from August 5 to August 9. The program aims to expose the students from the Indonesian Army to a holistic approach in international military affairs. It also aims to further strengthen the current ties of the Philippine Army and the Indonesian Army when it comes to training exchanges.
“We agree that the cooperation between Indonesia and the Philippines should be maintained because we face the same threat of terrorism. Through these training exchanges, we are able to learn from each other to develop the best approach to fight it and then solve the problem together, ”said Dewantara.
“As we face terrorism, we also have to deal with new threats like in cybersecurity. The Philippine Army also sees the importance of strengthening our information sharing and exchanges of intelligence as a way to defeat terrorism, ”said Sarsagat. "We have sent our soldiers in Indonesia and they are learning a lot from your experiences in fighting terrorism," he added.
After the courtesy call, the delegation was given a command briefing to acquaint them with the Philippine Army's mission, functions, and organization. #
