Marcos open to Japan inclusion in Balikatan

PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said his administration is looking into the possibility of allowing Japanese military forces to join the annual Balikatan exercises between the Philippines and US troops.

In an interview with the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (Focap), Marcos said the inclusion of Japanese forces in the Balikatan will make it easier for the Philippines and Japan to work together, to coordinate and focus on areas where the problems are, and maximize the resources.

“Well, Balikatan is traditionally between the Philippines and the US. That’s part of our military defense treaty that we hold these exercises every year… Now, with the inclusion of Japan, and to some of these exercises that we’ve been doing, not only Balikatan, but others, I don’t see any reason why Japan should not be part of those exercises in the future… And, I think that may be something that we can study,” he said.

Marcos said Japan’s participation in Balikatan will also be beneficial in the maintenance of peace and stability, freedom of navigation and adhere “totally and completely, and constantly to the rule of international law,” particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos).

Marcos recently concluded a trilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden and

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio at the White House in Washington, DC where the three countries reiterated their strong commitment to economic and maritime cooperation.

The President noted, however, that the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between the Philippines and Japan is different from the country’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) with the United States.

“It’s not the same as a Visiting Forces Agreement. That, I think, that’s not, it’s not similar -- we’ve had problems with that with the Americans, some American forces, we all know. But that’s not… it’s very, very different from what the Reciprocal Agreement will be with the Japanese,” Marcos responded when asked which country should take custody of erring Japanese servicemen in case the RAA is appr oved.

“It’s not going to be as if it’s their base and they, their seamen will come down and will go into the city and go -- I don’t think that that’s a part of the agreement,” he added.

The RAA is seen to greatly boost the military cooperation between the two nations, aside from improving regional security.

It will facilitate procedures and set guidelines when Philippine forces visit Japan for training and joint exercises, and vice versa.

The 2024 Balikatan exercises are set to start on April 22. (TPM/ SunStar Philippines)