By Manny Mogato MANILA, Jan 5 (Reuters) - The Philippines will spend 10 billion pesos (about $200 million) in 2007 on the purchase of attack helicopters, shallow water boats and other equipment for the armed forces, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said on Friday. The purchases will be used to bolster the military, one of the most ill-equipped in the region, in its fight against Muslim militants and communist rebels. Arroyo, who is also the armed forces' commander-in-chief, met senior defence and military officials at the main army base in Manila to finalise the shopping list of 14 major items to be bidded out in the next few weeks. "The pre-procurement conference was the first step in the process of procuring 10 billion pesos worth of equipment for the modernisation," she later told soldiers. Lieutenant-General Antonio Romero, head of the military panel on upgrading equipment, said big ticket items to be purchased include six refurbished UH-1H helicopters, 20 upgraded MG-520 attack helicopters and several shallow water boats for soldiers to penetrate river systems and marshlands in the southern Philippines. Other items on the shopping list included assault rifles, tactical radios and bullet proof vests. A defence official told Reuters the government planned to spend 30 billion pesos in the six years from 2006 to upgrade the military's internal security operations capabilities. Basic equipment such as helicopters, trucks, rifles, radios and smaller boats were programmed for acquisition until 2012. About 60 billion pesos to buy equipment for the air force and navy is allocated for 2012 to 2018 and 120 billion pesos to modernise equipment would be spent on the third and last six-year period until 2024. ($ = 49 pesos)
