Japan, Philippines to discuss intelligence sharing: Takaichi

Tokyo: The Philippines and Japan agreed on Thursday to negotiate an intelligence sharing agreement, as the two nations draw closer under the increasing shadow of China's naval ambitions.

Visiting Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos and Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi also said they would upgrade their ties to bolster security and economic cooperation.

"At today's meeting, regarding national security, we agreed to begin formal negotiations on the General Security of Military Information Agreement," Takaichi told a news conference following talks with Marcos.

Japan already has such an agreement with its partners the United States, Australia and South Korea to protect shared military secrets.

Takaichi said she had agreed with Marcos to "elevate our bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership".

"This reflects our shared determination to continue strengthening our ties as like-minded nations... that will continue even in the changing international environment," she said.

Marcos hailed "very important steps to further strengthen our defence cooperation and to uphold a rules-based maritime order".

The two countries' shared grievances over Chinese maritime territorial claims have seen them draw increasingly close in recent years, with Tokyo supplying coast guard ships and radar systems.

Japan and China are in territorial and economic disputes in the East China Sea, where coastguard ships from both sides routinely stage dangerous standoffs.

In the South China Sea, Beijing has deployed navy and coast guard vessels in a bid to bar the Philippines from strategically important reefs and islands, leading to a string of confrontations.

This year, Japan participated for the first time in annual US-Philippines military exercises.

Tokyo and Manila have also signed a reciprocal access deal allowing for the deployment of troops on each other's territory, and this month Japan's Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said he was aiming for the "early transfer" of Abukuma-class destroyers to the Philippines.

Before his meeting with Takaichi, Marcos addressed the Japanese parliament and stressed that Manila and Tokyo "are committed to strengthening maritime security and ensuring that our seas remain open, secure, and governed by rules, not by force".

His visit comes just weeks after Tokyo eased decades-old arms export rules in a major policy shift.

Ahead of his four-day trip, Marcos told Japanese media that the Philippines was "very grateful for Japan's continuing help and support in terms of our modernisation of our military".

"Japan and the Philippines have experienced the same difficulties in terms of coercive acts," he said.