Japan-Philippines Defense Ministerial Meeting (Summary)

in Japanese
November 17th, 2019
Japan Ministry of Defense

　On 17th November, 2019, commencing at 4:05 pm (local time) for approx. 15 minutes, Defense Minister Kono, who was visiting Thailand to attend the 6th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus), held a meeting with Secretary of the National Defense Delfin N. Lorenzana of the Philippines. The summary of the meeting is as follows:

1. Opening

　Minister Kono offered his condolences to causalities by frequent earthquakes in Mindanao, and stated the Japan-Philippines defense cooperation has steadily been making progress in broad fields such as port calls by vessels and aircraft, joint exercises, capacity building assistance, and transfer of defense equipment and technology. In response, Secretary Lorenzana stated that the Philippines would like to further promote the bilateral cooperation.

2. Bilateral Cooperation

  1. 　(1) Minister Kono stated that Japan would like to promote cooperation such as port calls by vessels and aircraft, Japan-Philippines-U.S. trilateral cooperation including JSDF’s participation in the Philippines-U.S. joint exercises, personnel exchanges including high-level talks, transfer of defense equipment and technology based on the “Vientiane Vision 2.0.” In response, Secretary Lorenzana stated that the Philippines welcomes these measures.
  2. 　(2) Both ministers agreed to further enhance defense cooperation in broad fields including these cooperation mentioned above.

3. Regional Issues

  1. 　(1) Regarding the situation of North Korea, Minister Kono emphasized the importance of implementing UNSC resolutions, and both ministers agreed to continue their cooperation on this issue.
  2. 　(2) Both ministers also exchanged opinions on the situation of the South China Sea, and shared serious concerns over actions undermining regional peace and prosperity.