Japan Arms Philippines With USD27M Radar, Drones Amid China Tension
(MENAFN) Japan will supply the Philippines with a coastal radar system and surveillance drones, as Tokyo moves to strengthen a key partner facing China’s growing assertiveness at sea, local media reported Monday.
The deal, valued at 4.3 billion yen ($27 million), was signed in Manila by Philippine Foreign Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro and Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Katsuro Kitagawa, according to a Tokyo-based news agency.
Under the agreement, the Philippine Navy will receive the radar system, while the Philippine Air Force will get unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance missions.
The radar transfer falls under Japan’s 2023 Official Security Assistance (OSA) program. According to the same news agency, it will be the first time Tokyo has handed over completed Japanese-made defense equipment to a like-minded country under the framework.
The project is of “great importance in further promoting security cooperation between Japan and the Philippines, enhancing security of important sea lanes for Japan, and contributing to maintaining and strengthening regional peace and stability,” Japan’s Foreign Ministry said.
The agreement is the latest step in a steady deepening of security ties between Tokyo and Manila. Both are US allies in Asia, and both are wary of China’s expanding military activity across the Indo-Pacific.
Beijing claims the Senkaku Islands, an uninhabited chain in the East China Sea that Japan controls. It also remains locked in territorial disputes in the South China Sea with the Philippines and other countries.
The deal, valued at 4.3 billion yen ($27 million), was signed in Manila by Philippine Foreign Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro and Japanese Ambassador to the Philippines Katsuro Kitagawa, according to a Tokyo-based news agency.
Under the agreement, the Philippine Navy will receive the radar system, while the Philippine Air Force will get unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance missions.
The radar transfer falls under Japan’s 2023 Official Security Assistance (OSA) program. According to the same news agency, it will be the first time Tokyo has handed over completed Japanese-made defense equipment to a like-minded country under the framework.
The project is of “great importance in further promoting security cooperation between Japan and the Philippines, enhancing security of important sea lanes for Japan, and contributing to maintaining and strengthening regional peace and stability,” Japan’s Foreign Ministry said.
The agreement is the latest step in a steady deepening of security ties between Tokyo and Manila. Both are US allies in Asia, and both are wary of China’s expanding military activity across the Indo-Pacific.
Beijing claims the Senkaku Islands, an uninhabited chain in the East China Sea that Japan controls. It also remains locked in territorial disputes in the South China Sea with the Philippines and other countries.
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