FACT CHECK: The Philippines has not been gifted tanks by the US in 2023

The claim: The Philippines has been gifted 114 tanks and $100 million by the United States for better defense against China. 

Rating: FALSE

Why we fact-checked this: The claim was made by a channel with 295,000 subscribers. The video itself has 6,372 views and 166 likes on YouTube as of writing.

Old video: The video shows a clip of several tanks and other military vehicles in a boat, reportedly on their way to the Philippines. The original video which contains the clip was first posted by the YouTube channel MIL3010.

The video, posted on December 9, 2022,  is titled “US Army, NATO. Loading M1A2 Abrams tanks and armored vehicles on a ship to Europe.” Text on screen states that the US shipped tanks and armored vehicles for exercises and to strengthen the defense of NATO countries. 

Previous donations: In 2015, the PH military received 114 armored vehicles from the US. According to a report released by Rappler, the Armed Forces of the Philippines received 114 M113A2 Armored Personnel Carriers (APC). APCs are different from tanks.

A Forbes article said that APCs are built for transporting personnel and equipment, and are not for combat. They are vulnerable to anti-tank weapons and do not carry the artillery that tanks do. 

No recent announcements: As of writing, there have been no official reports and announcements that can be found on the official Facebook pages of the Armed Forces of the Philippines or the US embassy in the Philippines about the claim. Likewise, there have been no announcements made on the official website of the Philippine Army. There have also been no reports on the Philippines receiving $100 million from its ally.

As of March 16, 2023, Rappler has published at least three fact check articles debunking similar claims about the Philippines receiving free tanks or buying them from other countries. 

These fact-checks are the following: 

1. FACT CHECK: Japan didn’t give Type 74 battle tanks to the Philippines – February 7, 2023
2. FACT CHECK: Video shows Singapore military parade practice, not tanks bought by PH from Israel – February 8, 2023
3. FACT CHECK: Video shows Singapore military vehicles, not donations from Japan – February 23, 2023

For official announcements regarding Philippine military acquisitions, visit the official Facebook page of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, or the official website of the Philippine Army. – Katarina Ruflo/Rappler.com

Katarina Ruflo is a graduate of Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program. This fact check was reviewed by a member of Rappler’s research team and a senior editor. Learn more about Rappler’s fact-checking mentorship program here.
Keep us aware of suspicious Facebook pages, groups, accounts, websites, articles, or photos in your network by contacting us at factcheck@rappler.com. Let us battle disinformation one Fact Check at a time.