Japan’s defence chief visits Philippines to deepen security ties, witness a combat exercise

Japanese Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi travelled to the Philippines on Tuesday to witness an international combat drill and conduct talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr intended to broaden defence ties between the nations, officials said.

Koizumi’s meeting in the capital Manila with Marcos and Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr may include a discussion of a possible transfer of used Japanese destroyers to the Philippines.

The Philippines and Japan, both treaty allies of the United States, 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.

US, 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.

Koizumi will be among representatives from 16 countries, including India and Australia, who are expected to travel Wednesday to the northwestern Philippine town of Paoay to witness a key Balikatan exercise in which Philippine, US, Japanese and Canadian firepower will be used in a mock attack on a ship about 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the coast.

Japanese forces will fire two volleys of Type 88 missiles to help sink the decommissioned World War II-era Philippine navy warship, Philippine Marine Corps 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 defence cooperation agreement Monday with Indonesian Defense Secretary Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin. “As Japan faces the most severe and complex security environment in the postwar era, it is important to establish a multilayered network of allies and like-minded countries, while expanding it and strengthening the deterrence,” Koizumi said in a recent news conference in Tokyo.

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-defence.

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. The Philippines shares that concern following a spike in territorial spats with Beijing in the South China Sea.

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, noting the issue could come up in Koizumi’s talks with Philippine officials. The details of the potential exchange have not been disclosed.

While allies led by the US and Australia welcomed Japan’s updated policy, China criticised the change. Chinese 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.”