The Philippines, US, and Japan announced on Thursday that they are launching a Japan-Philippines-US humanitarian assistance and disaster response exercise that could be integrated into the existing trilateral or multilateral activities.
In a Joint Vision Statement released by the leaders of the three nations, they pledged to strengthen their extensive coordination to promote maritime domain awareness and deepen cooperation on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
“We emphasize our commitment to advancing multilateral maritime domain awareness cooperation through such venues as the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness (IPMDA). We intend to identify and implement opportunities for combined training with Southeast Asian regional partners,” they said in the joint statement.
“We are also launching a Japan-Philippines-U.S. humanitarian assistance and disaster response exercise, which could be integrated into trilateral or multilateral activities, including Balikatan 2025, to ensure our countries are ready and able to work together seamlessly and expeditiously in response to any crisis or contingency.”
At the same time, they also announced the establishment of a trilateral maritime dialogue to enhance coordination and collective responses to promote maritime cooperation to address illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.
The US and Japan also made a commitment for the continued support to the Philippine Coast Guard’s (PCG) capacity building, including through Japan’s recent provision of 12 Coast Guard vessels and plans to provide five additional vessels to the Philippines.
In addition, following the first-ever joint exercise between their coast guards in 2023, the US looks forward to welcoming Philippine and Japan Coast Guard members onto a US Coast Guard vessel during a patrol in the Indo-Pacific this year.
“Within the next year, our coast guards also plan to conduct an at-sea trilateral exercise and other maritime activities in the Indo-Pacific to improve interoperability and advance maritime security and safety,” the statement said. PND
