Philippines ratifies landmark defense access pact with Japan

Philippines ratifies landmark defense access pact with Japan

The Philippine Senate ratified a reciprocal access agreement (RAA) with Japan in mid-December 2024 that will allow the nations’ forces to deploy on each other’s territory as both countries contend with the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) increasingly assertive actions.

The RAA, the first Japan has signed with another Asian nation, will ease the entry of equipment and troops for combat training and disaster response, enhancing security cooperation between Manila and Tokyo.

The Senate voted unanimously to ratify the deal, which was signed by each nation’s defense and foreign ministers in July 2024.

Japan and the Philippines, longtime allies of the United States, have taken a strong stand against an increasingly assertive PRC in the East China and South China seas. They also have voiced concern over tensions in the Taiwan Strait, where Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping has threatened to annex self-governed Taiwan by force.

Beijing arbitrarily claims almost the entire South China Sea, a vital conduit for global trade, and continues to defy an international tribunal’s 2016 ruling that rejected those territorial assertions. PRC crews have harassed, blocked and rammed civilian and military vessels operating lawfully in the exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of other claimant states, including Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.

In the East China Sea, meanwhile, Tokyo has condemned frequent territorial incursions by PRC vessels around the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands.

The RAA paves the way for more bilateral and multilateral security engagements, such as Japan’s full participation in Balikatan, a Philippines-U.S. exercise held annually in the Philippines. Japan Self-Defense Forces personnel previously attended as observers. The pact also calls for South China Sea patrols within the Philippines’ EEZ.

The agreement allows Tokyo’s surface-to-ship missile units to train with U.S. weapons such as the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System and midrange missile systems on the Philippines’ Luzon Island, analysts say. It also allows the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force’s Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade and U.S. personnel to train with small, ground-launched munitions and drones.

Japan, which hosts about 60,000 U.S. military personnel, also has RAAs with Australia and the United Kingdom, and is negotiating one with France.

The Philippines ratification came just days after U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expressed confidence about enhanced capabilities among Australia, Japan and the U.S. as he observed joint exercises showcasing closer cooperation. Austin also reaffirmed the importance of the Japan-U.S. alliance and Washington’s commitment to regional security.

During the December 2024 trilateral Yama Sakura exercises at Camp Asaka on the outskirts of Tokyo, Austin noted that the necessary equipment, munitions and people are in place, and that “these are the things that will guarantee success if we ever get challenged on the battlefield.”

Under a national security strategy introduced in 2022, Japan is rapidly increasing its defense capabilities to enhance deterrence against growing threats from the PRC, North Korea and Russia, and has bolstered defense cooperation, especially with Australia and the U.S.