MANILA - Official talks for the termination of the Philippines' chopper procurement deal with Russia have begun, a defense official said, following a declaration Wednesday by Moscow's envoy to Manila that the contract remains valid.

• PH calls off chopper deal with Russia, Lorenzana confirms

Arsenio Andolong, spokesman of the Department of National Defense (DND), said formal communications have commenced between the two parties after the notice to terminate was served by the Philippine government.

"May exchange of communications between the two parties. At wala pang further progress nun kasi naghihintay pa kami ng sagot sa kanila on certain issues nila," Andolong told reporters Thursday.

(There is already an exchange of communications between the two parties. There is no further progress yet because we are still awaiting their reply on certain issues from their end.)

"What was basically done was to state our position. Tapos, sila nag-state ng position nila. Pero wala pang concrete na way forward. Pero this is part of the process kasi ng termination," he added.

(They also stated their position. But there is still no concrete way forward. But this is part of the termination process.)

Then Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana canceled on June 25 the P12.7 billion deal to acquire 16 Mi-17 transport helicopters from Russia due to fears of possible sanctions from the United States.

The decision, he said, was made by then President Rodrigo Duterte even as the latter had pivoted the Philippines towards Russia and China while distancing from the US, its traditional ally.

On Wednesday, Russian Ambassador to the Philippines Marat Pavlov said their side has yet to receive any official communication from the Philippines on the reported scrapping of the deal, which they consider as "valid until now".

He said the manufacturer continues to assemble the choppers since the Philippines already made a downpayment, while Filipino pilots had already been given training.

• Russia's chopper deal with PH still valid, envoy says

Lorenzana previously confirmed that P2 billion in downpayment have been released by the Philippine government after the "multi-year procurement contract" was signed in November 2021.

But according to Andolong, a formal termination notice had already been served by Lorenzana before he stepped down as defense chief on June 30, and that was presented to the local representative of the manufacturer, Sovtechnoexport.

Another one was sent out when the new administration took over, he added.

"Nagsimula na yung exchange of letters saka communication between the DND saka Sovtechnoexport... Tapos nagtatawagan. Pero wala pang face-to-face meeting. Pero nagsimula na yung, yung parang discussion" reiterated Andolong.

(The exchange of letters, of communication between the DND and Sovtechnoexport have commenced... Calls were made. But there's still no face-to-face meeting. But the discussion has started.)

A Contract Termination and Review Committee to undertake steps to formalize the termination of the contract was formed in August by the DND.

Under the contract, a delivery of the helicopters, which could have been used for combat, search and rescue operations, and medical evacuation, is scheduled to begin in November next year. Pavlov claimed that a chopper unit was ready to be turned over to the Philippines in June, but the Philippines declined to accept it.

In announcing the cancellation of the deal, Lorenzana cited sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act of 2017 that prohibits countries from purchasing Russian military hardware.

US Ambassador MaryKay Carlson on Monday said the US State Department has notified US Congress of its intent to make available to the Philippines $100 million in foreign military financing (FMF) after the Philippines said it has canceled its chopper deal with Russia.

Thanking the Philippines for its move in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Carlson said the funds from her government can be used by the DND to fund its modernization or offset the planned helicopter purchase.

The Philippines and US are bound by a Mutual Defense Treaty signed in 1951.

• US to make available $100M to PH after cancellation of Russia chopper deal

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