The defense ministers of Japan and the Philippines agreed on Thursday to strengthen security cooperation and expand joint military exercises between the two militaries. At the same time, both countries have expressed concern about China's increasingly assertive military operations in the region.
Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi and Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana also expressed concern about Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its impact on the Indo-Pacific region. The two sides pointed out that any attempt to change the status quo by force is unacceptable, Japan's defense ministry said in a statement. The statement avoided mentioning China by name.
Japan has significantly expanded joint military exercises with the United States and partners including Australia, India, France, Britain and Germany, which, like Japan, have expressed concerns about China's territorial claims in the region. The region has some of the busiest sea lanes in the world.
Japan is particularly concerned about the activities of the Chinese military and coast guard near the Japanese-controlled Senkaku islands in the East China Sea, which China calls the Diaoyu Islands.
On Thursday, Japan's Defense Ministry said it spotted a Chinese Y-9 electronic warfare aircraft flying over the Sakishima islands, although it did not violate Japanese airspace.
Nobuo Kishi and Lorenzana also agreed to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in defense equipment and technology transfer. Tokyo and Manila have reached an agreement in 2020 on Japan's export of aerial radar systems to the Philippine military.
For Japan, the Philippines is also geopolitically important as China's influence in the region grows.
For decades, China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei have been locked in an increasingly tense territorial standoff along the busy shipping lane.
On Saturday, the foreign ministers of the two countries will join the defense ministers for the first "2+2" security talks between the two countries.