Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro on Thursday shared concerns over recent military activities by China such as the aiming of radar at Japanese defense force fighter jets.
“Both ministers reaffirmed the need to further strengthen and develop bilateral cooperation under the increasingly severe security environment,” the Japanese Defense Ministry said in a press release following the 35-minute video teleconference.
They also expressed their commitment to further promote defense equipment and technology cooperation, it said.
During the talks, Koizumi briefed Teodoro on the radar incident on Dec. 6 in which Chinese military aircraft aimed their radar at Japanese Air Self-Defense Force fighters in a threatening manner, and a joint flight by Chinese and Russian bombers near Japan from the East China Sea to the Pacific on Dec. 9.
The two shared “grave concerns,” the ministry said, while reiterating their strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion in the East and South China seas.
China has been stepping up its pressure on and criticism of Japan after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi suggested in parliament in November that an attack on Taiwan could constitute an existential threat to her country and potentially trigger a response from the Self-Defense Forces.
China views the self-ruled democratic island as its own territory.
Security cooperation between Japan and the Philippines has deepened in recent years, with tensions escalating in the South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing remain locked in territorial disputes.
