Armed Forces of the Philippines

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) (Sandatahang Lakas ng Pilipinas) are the military forces of the Philippines. It consists of three main service branches; the Army, the Air Force, and the Navy (including the Marine Corps). The President of the Philippines is the Commander-in-Chief of the AFP and forms military policy with the Department of National Defense, an executive department acting as the principal organ by which military policy is carried out, while the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines serves as the overall commander and the highest-ranking officer in the AFP. Founded under the National Defense Act of 1935, while tracing its roots to the Philippine Revolutionary Army, the AFP has played an integral part in the country's history. The AFP has also been involved in various conflicts, such as combatting rebellion against the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and it's attached organizations, the New People's Army (NPA) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDF), and operations against local Islamic terrorists in Mindanao. The AFP has also been part of various peacekeeping operations around the world, as part of its contribution to the United Nations. At present, military service is entirely voluntary. Commander-in-Chief: President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. Secretary of National Defense: Secretary Gilberto Eduardo Gerardo C. Teodoro Jr., PAF (Res.) National Security Adviser: Secretary Eduardo M. Año Presidential Adviser for Military Affairs: Secretary Roman A. Felix Presidential Adviser on the West Philippine Sea: Secretary Andres C. Centino Military History of the Philippines and Warfare in pre-colonial Philippines Pre-colonial Philippines maintained local militia groups under the barangay system. Reporting to the datu, these groups, aside from maintaining order in their communities, also served as their defense forces. With the arrival of Islam, the system of defense forces in the Mindanao region's sultanates under Muslim control mirrored those other existing sultanates in the region.