Manila  - One communist rebel was killed and another captured in a clash with government troops in an eastern Philippine province, a military report said Friday.

The fighting erupted Thursday when patrolling soldiers encountered about 30 guerrillas in Aroroy town in Masbate province, 345 kilometres south-east of Manila, the report said.

Troops also recovered two M16 assault rifles, two pistols, two bandoleers with five long magazines and ammunition for the assault rifles.

General Alexander Yano, the military chief of staff, expressed confidence that the armed forces could successfully reduce the number of communist insurgents to inconsequential levels by the end of the term of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2010.

Yano said that based on military estimates, there were about 6,500 communist rebels in the country as of the first quarter of 2008. The guerrillas have about 5,500 firearms, he added.

The military still considers the communist insurgency the most serious threat to national security because of its wide geographical reach and determination to overthrow the government.

Communist rebels have been fighting the Philippine government since the late 1960s, making the movement one of the longest-running leftist insurgencies in Asia. (dpa)