The potential defense pact between the Philippines and Japan is not something to be worried about as it won’t go against the country’s primary charter.
“I don’t see anything wrong with it. It’s just that it institutionalizes that they will always help us, but the law of the Republic of the Philippines will prevail,” Senator Francis Tolentino said Sunday, citing a Supreme Court decision mentioning the Visiting Forces Agreement of the Philippines with the United States.
The senator’s remarks came at the heels of an agreement between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to strengthen Manila and Tokyo’s defense and security ties. They forged it by holding additional bilateral discussions addressing regional and international situations, especially in the Indo-Pacific region.
The VFA is a bilateral agreement in support of the Mutual Defense Treat, formed in 1951 by the United States and the Philippines to provide mutual assistance in the event of a foreign attack.
Marcos and Kishida have reached a consensus to strengthen overall security cooperation and increase defense capabilities in their respective countries.
Mr. Marcos’ five-day business visit to Tokyo is his third foreign trip in 2023.
Senate President Migz Zuburi, who previously endorsed a VFA with Japan, earlier claimed that the potential agreement makes “strategic sense.”
Zubiri, maintaining his earlier position, is optimistic that the proposal will muster enough support in the higher House.