Necessary alliance

The signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement with Japan will be a turning point in the power equation in the Asian region that is facing growing maritime tensions.

Japan is lining up several high impact projects, including proposals for ship and aircraft manufacturing in the Subic and Clark ecozones, that will address the Philippines’ and even the region’s needs for modern military assets.

Former Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera, in an interview with NHK World, said Japan and the Philippines are vital to the so-called First Island Chain that stretches from Okinawa to Taiwan.

All countries in the chain are being threatened by China in one way or another. Since Japan and the Philippines are both democratic maritime nations, they need to be on the same page, according to Onodera.

He said that based on a survey a sense of crisis pervades among government officials and the people of the Philippines who hold a strong resentment towards China mainly due to its expansionist actions.

The former Japanese defense official was referring to a 2023 survey that showed that 80 percent of respondents considered China as posing the most significant threat.

Japanese assistance will continue, Onodera said, adding that it will go beyond the provision of coast guard vessels and maritime radars that the Japanese Self Defense Force uses.

Onodera said discussions are ongoing about more lethal equipment such as anti-aircraft missiles and other defense assets to be provided the Philippines.

Analysts, however, said the provision of military weapons will face scrutiny in Japan since this may violate its pacifist Constitution.

A breakthrough agreement was the Official Security Assistance that provided coastal radars to the Philippines, which was the first agreement of its kind for Japan and showed how it regards the Philippines as an “important partner,” according to a Japanese analyst.

“Some people in Japan may feel hesitant about providing weapons to other nations,” the analyst said. “Such assistance could spark a fierce debate in Japan.”

Onodera, however, said that raising the capability of the Philippines to protect its waters will also benefit Japan.

“I visited Subic Bay, there’s a shipyard there but the Philippines does not have the capital nor suitable technology to build ships so Japan could work together with them to build coast guard vessels,” Obnodera said.

He added: “Clark Air Base has a huge airfield with plenty of undeveloped land around it but it is being used as a tourist attraction right now.”

“If it could be used for aircraft production or maintenance, these could become core industries for the Philippines. It could be a joint effort to make it possible for Japan to use the facility to transfer defense equipment to other Asian countries,” he said.

Onodera described the Philippines as a promising partner for Japan.

Japan is interested in the Philippines to complement its economy which is facing an aging crisis, compared to the Filipino population which is among the youngest in the region.

The Philippines and Japan have a free trade agreement, which is currently undergoing a refinement in procedures, that allows liberalized markets for goods and services.

The Philippines is expected to leverage its large workforce to sustain its strong economic growth which also creates a huge market.

“Japan has almost the same population as the Philippines but it is an aging society,” according to the Japanese analyst.

The Philippines and Japan are necessary allies in the region since they will be able to complement each other’s strengths to maintain the security balance in the Asia Pacific.