Japan and the Philippines sign landmark defense deal to counter China

Japan and Philippines’ defense pact signed on Monday seeks to counter China’s increasing aggression in the region and create deterrence that goes beyond reliance on the U.S., experts told CNBC.

The “Reciprocal Access Agreement,” which comes against the backdrop of tensions between the Philippines and China over the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, allows exchange of armed forces for training and joint military exercises between Tokyo and Manila.  

The deal was signed in Manila by Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in the presence of President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos Jr.

The partnership between the Philippines and Japan had been “upgraded one level higher,” Teodoro said at a joint briefing following the RAA ceremony,  according to Philippine state media.

“This is another milestone in our shared endeavor to ensure a rules-based international order to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and particularly in our region,” he added. 

That cooperation includes exchanging defense equipment and technology such as air and coastal surveillance radar and will build upon Japan’s Official Security Assistance initiative, which has provided defense assistance to “like-minded countries” like the Philippines. 

“The elephant in the room is China, and this is the point of strategic convergence between the Philippines and Japan,” said Rahman Yaacob, research fellow in the Southeast Asia Program at the Lowy Institute. 

The RAA marks Japan’s second such agreement with a country in the Asia-Pacific region, following similar agreements with Australia in 2022. The treaty must be ratified by the appropriate legislative bodies of the Philippines and Japan before coming into force.

Kamikawa called the signing of the RAA “a great achievement” for the two countries to further strengthen security and defense cooperation. 

“Both countries have maritime territorial disputes with China, and they are facing increasingly assertive and aggressive Chinese naval forces,” Yaacob added. 

Amid tensions with China, both Japan and the Philippines have been increasing cooperation with the U.S. In April, the White House reaffirmed the country’s “ironclad” commitment to defend both the allies in a three-way joint statement.

However, the RAA shows that U.S. allies in the region want to play a more proactive role in regional defense and security rather than just depending on the U.S. for deterrence, said Muhammad Faizal, research fellow at Singapore-based S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.

“They realize that they cannot depend solely on the U.S.-led regional security architecture to ensure balance of power vis-à-vis China as the U.S….