By Prashanth Parameswaran
Tokyo and Manila are looking to elevate their defense relationship.
From January 29-31, Philippine defense secretary Voltaire Gazmin paid a three-day visit to Japan where he led talks with his counterpart Gen. Nakatani to boost the defense relationship between the two countries.
Japan and the Philippines have a long relationship that extends beyond contemporary concerns about China. As I have noted previously, it was in Manila that former Japanese prime minister Takeo Fukuda delivered his famous “Fukuda Doctrine” speech in 1977, which heralded Tokyo’s new approach to Southeast Asia after the relationship had been marred by Japanese occupation during WWII. But while economics has long been a major part of the relationship, under Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and amid growing anxiety about Chinese actions in the East China Sea and South China Sea, both countries have been strengthening their defense ties under a strategic partnership inked in 2011.
The recent visit was another sign that the relationship between the two sides could grow closer still in this dimension. The list of proposed measures in their joint press statement, released on January 30 and seen by The Diplomat, is ambitious. Yes, the two sides did brief each other on maritime security issues, which have brought them ever closer over the past few years. But they also signed a memorandum of understanding outlining specific steps to enhance defense cooperation and exchanges between their two defense ministries.
Read the full story at The Diplomat