Japan and Philippines agree to weapons pact talks as China’s ‘coercive activities’ cause alarm

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Defense chiefs from Japan and the Philippines expressed renewed alarm on Tuesday over what they say is China’s intensifying coercive actions in disputed waters, and agreed to start talks on a weapons transfer pact that will allow Tokyo to provide used destroyers to Manila’s navy.

Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi held separate talks with his Philippine counterpart, Gilberto Teodoro Jr., and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Manila to broaden defense ties between the two nations, which are both treaty allies of the United States.

On Wednesday, Koizumi will be among representatives from 17 countries, including India and Australia, who will travel to Paoay, in northwestern Philippines, for an annual combat exercise called Balikatan in which U.S., Philippine, Japanese and Canadian firepower will be used in a mock allied assault to sink a ship about 40 kilometers (25 miles) off the coast.

The location for the live-fire drill faces the disputed South China Sea, which has been claimed virtually in its entirety by Beijing. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan have also been involved in the long-simmering territorial standoffs, but confrontations have spiked in recent years between Chinese and Filipino coast guard and naval forces.

Japan and China have separate disputes over uninhabited East China Sea islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

“Secretary Teodoro and I reaffirmed our strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion in the East China Sea and the South China Sea,” Koizumi told a press conference with Teodoro after their closed-door talks in Manila.

In a joint statement, Koizumi and Teodoro expressed their serious concern over China’s intensifying “coercive activities” in both disputed offshore areas.

Chinese officials did not immediately comment on their remarks, but have previously accused the Philippines of allowing countries led by the U.S. to “gang up” against China and contain its rise.

The Philippines and Japan signed a pact in 2024 allowing their forces to stage large-scale combat drills. The Reciprocal Access Agreement paved the way for Japan to deploy 1,400 military personnel to become regular participants in the exercises called Balikatan.

U.S., Filipino and other allied forces annually take part in Balikatan — the Tagalog word for shoulder-to-shoulder — to brace for security contingencies and deter China’s increasing assertiveness in the region.

During the Paoay drills, Japanese forces will fire two volleys of Type 88 missiles to sink a decommissioned World War II-era Philippine navy warship, Philippine marine Col. Dennis Hernandez told The Associated Press, adding that Marcos plans to watch the live-fire maneuvers via video in Manila.

Before reaching the Philippines, Koizumi visited the Indonesian capital Jakarta and signed a defense cooperation agreement Monday with Indonesia’s Defense Secretary Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.

Japan has bolstered its offensive capability with long-range missiles to attack enemy targets from a distance, a major break from its post-World War II principle limiting the use of force to self-defense.

Japan scrapped a ban on lethal weapons exports on April 21, another major change in its postwar pacifist policy as Japan seeks to build up its arms industry in response to growing Chinese aggression in the region.

Lifting the ban allows Japan to consider the transfer to the Philippines of up to six used Japanese destroyers of the Abukuma-class, which can be utilized for patrols and detecting aerial, sea surface and undersea threats, Hernandez said. The details of the potential exchange have yet to be negotiated.

While allies led by the U.S. and Australia welcomed Japan’s updated policy, China criticized the change.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said last month that the global community, including China, will “resolutely resist Japan’s reckless moves toward a new type of militarism.”

___

Aaron Favila in Manila, Philippines and Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.