PH, Japan Foreign Ministers Chart New Pathways of Strategic Partnership
Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa discuss ways to further strengthen the Strategic Partnership between the Philippines and Japan. (Photo by Rene Fajardo)
TOKYO, 14 February 2023 – In their first face-to-face bilateral meeting, Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique A. Manalo and Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi Yoshimasa identified areas for potential cooperation in line with a future-oriented approach to the two countries’ decade-old Strategic Partnership.
The two foreign ministers met on 10 February 2023 in Tokyo on the sidelines of the successful Official Visit of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to Japan, highlighting the essential role Japan plays in the priority agenda of the President as well as other areas of synergies and complementarities.
The meeting tackled the ever-increasing high-level engagements between the Philippines and Japan in pursuit of closer collaboration and stronger defense and security cooperation in addressing common security challenges. The Secretary expressed the Philippines’ intent to facilitate exchanges and joint exercises among defense establishments, noting the signing of the Terms of Reference on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief activities, which was a commitment made during the inaugural foreign and defense ministerial meeting (2+2) in April 2022. Secretary Manalo also discussed with Foreign Minister Hayashi the possibility of joint development and production of defense equipment even as the Philippines and Japan continue their defense transfer projects.
On the economic development front, Foreign Minister Hayashi reiterated Japan’s commitment of JPY600 billion of official development assistance for the next two years, as well as its readiness to extend assistance via the Post Disaster Standby Loan 3, MRT 3 Rehabilitation, and the Communication, Navigation, Surveillance / Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) system of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Secretary Manalo welcomed the commitment and conveyed the country’s efforts to maximize market access of Philippine agricultural products such as cavendish bananas to Japan through a review of the Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement and proposed tariff elimination. He also looked forward to welcoming more investors and tourists to the Philippines.
Secretary Manalo acknowledged the assistance of Japan in helping the country develop its space program, in the reintegration of the people of Mindanao into the larger Philippine society, in augmenting the capabilities of our agencies for maritime law enforcement and domain awareness, and in developing even closer people-to-people links through tourism and labor cooperation.
Japanese Foreign Minister Hayashi conveyed the importance of emerging areas of cooperation such as space collaboration especially as Japan and the United States recently signed in January a framework of cooperation for space exploration and its peaceful uses. Secretary Manalo welcomed this proposal, conveying the need to have regional norms in place for such cooperation. END
Joining the meeting from the Department of Foreign Affairs were Undersecretary for Bilateral Relations and ASEAN Affairs Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro, Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Affairs Neal Imperial, Minister Evangeline Jimenez Ong-Ducrocq of the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo, Northeast Asia Director Pamela Durian Bailon, Special Assistant Darell Artates, Consul Jan Kenneth Bolante of the Philippine Embassy in Tokyo and Assistant Director Jacqueline Ong. The Japanese Foreign Ministry was represented by Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko, Director-General Endo Kazuya, Director-General Arima Yutaka, Director Ota Manabu, Executive Assistant to the Minister Esaki Tomosaburo, Senior Foreign Policy Coordinator Murakami Manabu, and Political Officer Koji Ito. (Photo by Jacqueline Ong)