The Philippines and Lithuania have taken a significant step forward in bolstering their defense cooperation with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that formalizes and expands bilateral defense relations on Monday.

The Department of National Defense called the newly signed agreement a testament to the Philippine government's efforts to enhance cooperation with international partners.

DND Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Lithuanian Minister for National Defense Dovilė Šakalienė forged the MOU in Makati City.

Šakalienė is currently in the Philippines for a four-day official visit, marking a historic first as the country welcomes a Lithuanian Defense Minister.

The signing of the MOU comes on the heels of a bilateral meeting between Teodoro and Šakalienė, held on the sidelines of the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on 1 June 2025.

Building on recent positive developments between the two nations, the MOU establishes a concrete framework for collaboration between their respective defense establishments.

Key areas of cooperation outlined in the agreement include cybersecurity, defense industry development, munitions production, maritime security, and joint efforts to counter hybrid threats.

The agreement signals both countries' commitment to enhancing regional and global security through deeper strategic ties and shared defense capabilities.

Phl, Lithuanian in similar post

Ahead of the MOU signing, Philippine Teodoro and Šakalienė held in-depth discussions on pressing global security issues, focusing on developments in the West Philippine Sea, the broader South China Sea, and the European region.

"We're on the same panel and shared a quite similar position, and I think that Chinese delegates, somehow, were unhappy to hear the truth. But being the only NATO defense minister sanctioned by China for speaking the truth, I take it as a badge of honor," Šakalienė said.

"And therefore, I'm really honored to stand next to my dear colleague. We just concluded a very highly constructive meeting, which is, in my opinion, just the beginning of a very long and fruitful relationship," she added.

Both officials underscored their countries’ shared commitment to upholding international law and deterring unilateral actions that threaten regional and global stability.

Šakalienė said the newly signed pact serves as a significant milestone that "takes our bilateral ties to a strategic level."

Cross regional ties

Also, both officials emphasized the importance of multilateral cooperation in addressing evolving security challenges.

Lithuania reaffirmed its strong support for the 2016 arbitral ruling that invalidated China’s expansive claims in the South China Sea, expressing solidarity with the Philippines amid rising tensions in the contested waters.

"We reaffirmed shared concerns over regional security and one of the topics of common interest is maritime security, including challenges related to shadow fleets, Russian and Chinese, that are operating in your waters and in our waters, as I said, applying very similar approaches and protection of our critical underwater infrastructure is a similar concern of ours," Šakalienė said.

For his part, Teodoro stressed that both countries agreed to work together "cross-regionally," in maintaining and stressing the rule of law in the international sphere, "particularly a rules-based global order, and our maritime security, which is based on fundamental principles of international law."

Teodoro emphasized the importance of upholding established international maritime law, warning against unilateral efforts to reshape global norms for the benefit of emerging powers.

"It's the need to resist any unilateral attempts to reword or re-engineer maritime law and the international order to the benefit of new powers that want to dominate the world and to the detriment of smaller nations," he said.