MANILA — Three Philippine Army (PA) officials have been appointed to the rank of lieutenant general, Malacañang announced on Monday.

They are Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo and Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, who are the commanders of the Armed Forces of the Philippines' (AFP) Visayas Command (VISCOM) and Western Mindanao Command (WESMINCOM), respectively.

Lt. Gen. Efren Baluyot, the current commander of PA's Armor Division, was also appointed to his new rank.

The three commanding officers were previously major generals until President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed them to their new ranks on March 23.

The Palace bared a list of hundreds of AFP appointments across several ranking positions, including captain, major, colonel, lieutenant commander, commander, commodore, rear admiral, brigadier general, major general, and lieutenant general.

Marcos Jr. confirmed their appointments on March 23 and April 4.

The Palace also announced the appointment of 18 new enlisted personnel in the Philippine Army, Navy, and Medical Administrative Corps.

The announcement came as the Philippine military was preparing to participate in the annual Balikatan exercises with the United States military.

• AFP gearing up for PH-US Balikatan exercises in April