Marcos, Takaichi agree to boost defense, regional cooperation

Amid rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and and Japan’s new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, agreed to bolster defense and security ties, underscoring trilateral cooperation with the United States as a cornerstone of peace and stability in the region.

Marcos held his first bilateral meeting with Takaichi on the sidelines of the 47th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. He personally congratulated the Japanese leader, who assumed office just six days ago.

Deepening Security Ties

Marcos highlighted the growing defense and security cooperation between Manila and Tokyo, particularly the entry into force of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) in September. The agreement was first implemented during the joint exercise Doshin-Bayanihan 5-25 and the transport of relief goods following the magnitude 6.9 earthquake in Cebu.

The two leaders also welcomed the agreement in principle on an Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement (ACSA) and reaffirmed their commitment to continued collaboration through the Official Security Assistance (OSA) program. They also emphasized the importance of the Philippines–United States-Japan Trilateral Cooperation as a key pillar of regional peace, stability, and development.

Economic and Infrastructure Cooperation

On the economic front, Takaichi expressed Japan’s intention to help strengthen the resilience of the Philippine economy and infrastructure, including contributions for food security through post-harvest rice processing equipment.

Marcos thanked Japan for its continued Official Development Assistant (ODA) and expressed his desire to expand cooperation across multiple sectors.

The two leaders also noted the recent signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation on comprehensive energy cooperation at the AZEC Ministerial Meeting and discussed advancing civil nuclear cooperation ahead of the next AZEC summit.

Regional Coordination

With the Philippines set to assume ASEAN Chairmanship next year- coinciding with the 70th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Philippines and Japan- Marcos and Takaichi agreed to maintain close coordination on regional issues, including the the South China Sea, North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, the abduction issue, the conflict in Myanmar, and border tensions between Cambodia-Thailand.