By Riyaz ul Khaliq
ISTANBUL (AA) - Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a military agreement in Manila that allows troops to deploy on each other's soil, an official statement said.
The Philippines-Japan Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) was signed by the two countries' foreign and defense ministers in a ceremony attended by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the statement from the Filipino presidency said.
The agreement will allow soldiers from both countries to train and operate in each other's territories under Visiting Force status.
The signing of the pact comes amid tensions in the disputed South China Sea between the Philippines and China.
Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko and Defense Minister Kihara Minoru will also hold a 2+2 meeting with their Filipino counterparts Enrique Manalo and Gilberto Teodoro Jr.
The 2+2 format, the highest consultative mechanism between Tokyo and Manila, was established in April 2022 to "further deepen security and defense policy coordination, as well as security cooperation between the two nations," the statement added.
Japan is one of the Philippines’ four strategic partners, having signed 264 bilateral agreements, said the statement.
The annual trade volume between the nations climbed to $20.71 billion last year.
Manila as well as Tokyo are treaty allies of the US.
While Tokyo has signed the RAA with Australia and the UK, Manila has a Visiting Forces Agreement with Washington and a Status of the Visiting Forces Agreement with Canberra.