The Philippines and France have signed an agreement allowing their troops to participate in joint exercises on each other’s soil, Manila said Friday—its first such pact with a European nation.
The archipelagic country has secured similar agreements with Japan, Canada and New Zealand over the past two years, as it seeks to counter China’s assertiveness in the disputed South China Sea.
The Philippines and China have engaged in frequent confrontations in the vital waterway, which Beijing claims almost in its entirety despite an international ruling that its assertion has no legal basis.
The new “status of visiting forces agreement” (SOVFA) with France was signed Thursday in Paris, hours after the Philippine military accused China of conducting “dangerous maneuvers” in the contested waters.
“The SOVFA will serve as the primary document to facilitate a wider range of defense cooperative activities between the Philippine and French armed forces in the territory of either country,” Manila’s defense department said in a statement.
The French Navy has previously joined joint drills in the South China Sea alongside Philippine and US vessels, while the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle made its first port visit to Subic Bay in February last year.
The agreement, which still requires ratification by both countries’ legislatures, is expected to expand cooperation with French ground forces, which have previously joined the annual Balikatan exercises as observers.
Separately, the Philippine military on Thursday accused China of conducting “dangerous maneuvers” near Pag-asa Island, about 450 kilometers from the coast of Palawan.
“While conducting lawful operations, BRP Benguet (LS-507) encountered a People's Liberation Army Navy vessel, which executed an unsafe and unprofessional maneuver by closing in and passing at a dangerously close distance,” the Philippines said.
Video released by Philippine authorities showed the Chinese vessel sailing alongside BRP Benguet, with fewer than 10 meters separating the two ships.
“That’s unsafe. That’s provocative,” Nep Padua told AFP on Friday.
“They moved, cutting in front of the bow. Normally, you do not do that—crossing at any angle,” he added.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to requests for comment.